Heat
by Kavander
Summary: When Hiro Hamada finds himself having a constant nightmare that brings his deepest fear to a reality, He winds up falling sick and lets his emotions take over. It's now the job of his older brother Tadashi to take care of him, and bring to the surface the worries that were sinking him down. Worries that he didn't know were about him.
1. Chapter 1

Hiro groaned silently as his pencil eraser ran invisible lines through his textbook. Taking a glance on the far wall across the room, it was evident that he would need to suffer another couple of painful hours, listening to what he claimed was the most pointless and painful lecture he had been forced to sit through. His mind whirled with all the other possible things he could be doing right now that didn't involve wanting to blow his brains out as his professor continued droning on about the basics of robotics.

As the new, and youngest, student started his first year at SFIT with a bang, Hiro soon found that his heart was absolutely not into the mandatory classes he was required to take as a first year student. He had spent hours arguing with his older brother about how pointless it was to be taking these classes, let alone something ridiculous like Robotics 101 when he clearly had the skills and understanding to be pushed way ahead into much more advanced classes like his older sibling. Tadashi would have none of it though. He insisted that Hiro start at the beginning , like everyone else. Through much persuasion and silent tantrums, he surrendered.

As painful and droning as they could be, It was almost a relief to not be burdened with such a heavy workload right in the beginning of his first year at SFIT. Hell, seeing all the work Tadashi came home with each night made him savor all the free time he currently had. As much as he craved to be pushed and tested, a few months of being the smart and brightest kid in his first year at SFIT wasn't so bad. Not like high school where it was constant bullying and being reprimanded by teachers who saw nothing but a show off. At least in college, the kid had respect from his professors and fellow students. Sure, some weren't taken with Hiro, but for the most part, these kids were blooming into adulthood and sought to focus on their own tasks at hand and futures, not pay any attention to the brainiac in the back of the class. That, and being the well known little brother to Tadashi, it was best to hate silently and move on.

Hiro always had a knack for making it known that class just was not interesting. He would normally roll his eyes, grunt loudly and purposefully make loud yawns to draw attention that this just wasn't worth his time. At that moment one of two things would happen. One, the teacher would stop all lessons and ask the simple question, "Am I boring you, Mr. Hamada?". Hiro would then pose a rather large, toothless grin and with his nose in the air state that he knew the material and was anxious to finish the lesson so he could get a head start on the days projects. Normally most professors would then tell the student to finish the lesson if he knew it so well, but knowing Hiro, he defiantly knew the lesson damn well. At that point it was futile to argue and waste anymore class time, so he was excused from class and allowed to head to the library to get started on the classes project. Since he always turned things in on time with flawless material, no one questioned it ( or rather didn't want to bother with it).

Tadashi was not always thrilled with Hiro's way of getting out of the boring classes, but he too , knew that Hiro knew his stuff. He won the argument over Hiro taking the classes in the first place, and as long as he was passing them, thats all the mattered. Tadashi did however make sure to tell Hiro that if he were to ever disrespect his professors by doing so, he would regret it. Hiro never bothered to push it to the point of seeing just how far Tadashi was will to go with his threats. The second thing that could happen would be that the professor reprimand Hiro for lazing about in class and causing a disruption, therefore giving him a warning to pay attention or to saddle him with extra work tasks. However, this second option really didn't happen too much, if any at all. Most teachers were understanding of his position and sure while some didn't like that his damn head was so big that if could roll right off his petite shoulders, he was still respected for his genius. He is a bright kid after all, and he was never a troublemaker. As long as he didn't disrupt classes and prevent the students from learning, Hiro did really as he pleased. It wouldn't last long anyways, and it wasn't all classes. Just the basics.

Hiro wasn't just groaning cause he was stuck in this mandatory lecture. If fact, he didn't even realize he was groaning until the young women next to him took a few passing glances his way and did a double take. This brought attention from a couple more surrounding students and only then did Hiro realize that he was being stared at. He straightened his slouching back and put his pencil down, determine to draw away their gazes. The truth of the matter was that Hiro felt off. More…gross off. He could feel his insides moving around, his stomach slightly tightening, his heart beating, his blood pumping. His head felt heavy and eyes droopy, though he swore he didn't feel tired, but more just plain exhausted. He felt like he had been side swept by a bus and was now feeling the repercussions. His body was growing a dull ache and he really just wanted this lecture to be over so he could go home. This morning he was a little off, but he figured it was from oversleeping.

The past couple nights, Hiro had been up late working on new upgrades for his megabot and had managed a good solid 3 hours before classes the next day. Tadashi, seeing the results of his actions first hand, single handedly pulled Hiro aside and had a long talk about how it was bad for his health and growth if he did not manage a full 8 hours of sleep every night. Even Tadashi knew that as a college student, well that just wasn't really in the cards, but Hiro had easy classes right now and should use that time wisely while he still had the chance. Not wanted to hear it again, Hiro managed to get the full 8 hours that night which he desperately needed, and then some the next night when he crashed early and got 10.

\- - - Lets just go back to this morning - - -

Tadashi had a hell of a time getting Hiro out of bed this morning. After letting the alarm ring twice and successfully pulling the covers off, Hiro still refused to leave his warm bed. Tadashi considered just leaving the decision to Hiro and letting him be late to his classes, but he just couldn't. He was proud of his little brother for going to the same school as he did and while it would make Tadashi's life 10 times easier to let Hiro reap the consequences, Tadashi wasn't that type of brother, especially since Hiro had just freshly started. If it had been late in the year or even his second year in, then he would have let him live with his decisions, but not when its only been 2 months since he's started and Tadashi wanted him to make a good name for himself despite him being a smart ass.

After literally dragging Hiro out of bed, he threw him in the bathroom and all the whining in the world couldn't stop him. They were gonna be late at this rate, and Tadashi would have none of that. After being ripped from his warm nest and thrown into what everyone can agree on is the coldest room in any house at 7am, Hiro was understandably a little grumpy. Convinced it wasn't his fault, he stood in the bathroom and growled as he pulled on the clothes that Tadashi so rudely shoved in his arms and slowly got ready for his day. It was at that moment that it clicked with him that he just didn't feel right. He ran a cold hand through his black hair and back over his face and looked in the mirror. Maybe he was getting sick? Nothing looked wrong with him. His skin was the same color its always been and although riddled with morning bags and crust under his eyes, his face looked that of a healthy 14 year old boy. Signing deeply, Hiro splashed some cold water on his face, brushed his teeth, and made a beeline for the door.

Standing on the top stairs of their home had great benefits. Not only was the living space kept neat and clean, it also carried the aroma of fresh breads, buns, cookies, coffees, and other delicious treats made fresh from right downstairs in the Lucky Cat Cafe, all homemade by none other then the boy's Aunt Cass. As caretaker of the boys since Hiro was at the tender age of 3, Cass took more pleasure in ensuring that her boys grew up the best and most fun way possible..that she could provide anyways. Aunt Cass has worked hard to be the very best mother she could be for the boys after their parents passed away, and that included also balancing her own business. Busy women? I think so. But she wouldn't change anything for the world.

Mornings were always hectic in the cafe. Everyone needing their morning pastries and coffees before they all start their work days, Cass was hard at work. However, she always made sure to provide a well balanced breakfast for her college men..and that breakfast consisted usually of heavy pancakes, caked in syrup and butter with fresh fruit and toast.

Breathing in the aroma at the top of the stairs, usually Hiro would be drooling by now. But this morning, he really just wanted away from all smells. The thought of eating the feast that Aunt Cass usually provided for them, actually sickened him alttle. Gingerly making his way downstairs and into the kitchen area of their home, Tadashi had already cleaned his plate and was now sipping on coffee, catching up with a newspaper. Hiro shuffled around the table, saw his plate, and carefully snagged just a piece of toast from it. There was no way he was going to eat all that food this morning. Usually, he would have half the food in his mouth before he could even sit down. Today though, he really didn't like the idea of eating at all. Of course, Tadashi would not like that and probably hound him as to why he's skipping the most important meal of the day. Of course, Hiro wasn't up to any of that. His sat down with a thud and with toast in mouth, began to chew while slipping on his socks. Tadashi looked up from his paper and smirked.

" You know, you wouldn't need to multitask like this is you had just gotten up when you were suppose too, bonehead"

"yeah yeah…" Hiro mumbled through his toast. Slipping on his last sock, he shoved the last bit in his mouth. Chewing his food, Hiro began to really focus on the flavor in his mouth. The warm butter, soaked into the wheat bread with a hint of a burnt flavor, and it made his stomach churn. He swallowed quickly, not giving any hints of the distaste that was probably written all over his face and ended up inhaling it. Hiro covered his mouth quickly and a cough soon erupted from him, constricting his throat making him feel even more uncomfortable. That small coughing fit was deep, and very horse. Tadashi, noticing this sudden action, put his coffee and paper down.

" You okay bud? This is what happens when you eat too fast" Hiro continued to cough, trying to catch his breath in the process. He wasn't choking on his food anymore, but the first cough started this underlying strain of coughs he didn't even knew he had sitting in his chest. Coughing harder, he pushed himself up from the table and stumbled over to the sink, reaching for a glass.

"….Hiro? Hey, are you okay?" Concerned, Tadashi got up out of his chair and walked over to Hiro. By the time he got there, the coughing had slowed and the boy was chugging down a glass of water. Tadashi instinctively began to rub Hiro's back when Hiro pulled away and set his glass down on the counter.

" 'm fine Tadashi, I just swallowed too fast."

"..You sure? That sounded a little harsher then that…" Tadashi began to pry. Before he could say any more on the matter, Hiro quickly crossed the room, picked up his shoes and began to slip them on.

" I'm fine, really! … just ate too fast thats all. Come on, or we're gonna be late."

" Wait, you're not even going to have breakfast?" Tadashi questioned.

" I just had toast didn't I? But there's no time, we gotta go!"

" One piece of toast isn't breakfast Hiro, that's not really a hea-"

" Well whatever! I was late okay? Sorry, I'll eat when we get to school. Now lets go! or we're gonna be late and its gonna be your fault" Hiro grabbed his bag at the foot of the stairs and made his way into the Cafe. Tadashi rolled his eyes at the ridiculous comment that it was his fault they would be late, and picking up his plate, slipping it in the sink. He picked up his book bag, grabbed his keys, and followed his brother down the stairs.

Aunt Cass was busy serving customers by the time Tadashi had reached the floor. Hiro had already made his way past the counter, completely passing by the warm plate of fresh cinnamon rolls, which was unusual. Hiro usually always managed to swipe one, shove it in his mouth, then another for his hand. Too preoccupied to even think about it, Tadashi said hello to the regulars in the cafe as he made his way to the door. Hiro on the other hand, had done everything in his power to slip by unnoticed. Of course, his sly movements weren't enough to slip by Aunt Cass, who had her nephew wrangled in a bear hug.

" OHH my boys! have a great day today! I can feel it's a good day for you!"

" T..Thanks Aunt Cass…We will " Hiro gasped as he wriggled out of his aunts death grip. She quickly moved to give Tadashi a hug and straightened the hat on his head.

" Okay you two! Have a great day! Tadashi, don't forget that I need you to pick up some more baking powder and eggs after school please. Hiro, good luck on that test today sweetie!"

Tadashi scanned the back wall, looking for the clock. They were pushing it.

" Sure, Aunt Cass. We'll see you later" Tadashi placed his hand on Hiro's shoulder, and gently pushed him towards the door. A second ago, Hiro was racing to leave asap, but Tadashi found he was dragging his feet as they left the Lucky Cat Cafe and headed towards the moped. On a nice day like this, Tadashi preferred they walk. However, thanks to Hiro, they would just make it in time. Tadashi pulled his keys out and turned to hand Hiro his helmet..only to be surprised he wasn't there.

" … Hiro? Hiro! C'mon, seriously we're going to be late!" Tadashi rolled the moped up on the street, looking towards the road to school to see the younger Hamada gingerly making his way down the road. Sighing, Tadashi turned on the bike and followed him.

Hiro, not wanting to get on the moped, decided to walk to school after leaving the cafe. The smells in the cafe were too much for his stomach at the time, and the thought of speeding down the road quite frankly made him feel nauseated. He just wanted to breathe in the cool air and forget about the grossness he felt in his body., not caring if he was going to be late. Hearing the hum of a motor, it wasn't long before Tadashi had pulled up beside him and pushed the bike helmet into his arms.

" Helmet, now. Get on please I'm not going to be late because of you"

" Then go without me! I don't care if i'm a few minutes late Tadashi, I would rather walk." Hiro ignored the look of confusion on Tadashi's face and still carrying the helmet, continued towards the school. Tadashi on the other hand, and not knowing any better, refused to leave Hiro behind.

" Hiro, is there something wrong? Look, we don't have time for this. And i'm not letting you be late this early in the year, I don't care what you say. Please, just get on so we can-"

"Tadashi, stop! I'm fine, everything fine! I just want to walk, theres nothing wrong with that."

Sighs. " Hiro-" Before Tadashi could say another word, he was left with his mouth gaped open.  
I don't have time for this. Tadashi had had enough. Pulling forward on his bike, he crossed in front of Hiro, blocking his path, and ripped the helmet from Hiro's arms.

" Tadashi! what the-" He didn't complete his sentence as his brother threw the helmet on his head, and grabbed a hold of his brothers wrist.

" Lets go, Bonehead. I'm not playing games with you. Your riding whether you want too or not. Lets go!"

Hiro attempted to wrestle free, for the sake of his stomach. "Tadashi, I don't want-"

" Hiro.." Tadashi said in a warning tone.

" Can't I just-"

" HIRO!"

Hiro winced at the strong tone, and reluctantly climbed on the back of Tadashi's moped. As soon as Hiro was on the bike, Tadashi turned to face the road and drove right off, missing the nervousness in his brothers face. The boys road quickly to school in silence.

Once arrived, Hiro climbed off the moped and wished he had listened to his gut and refused Tadashi's ride. That drive to school had upset Hiro's stomach, and he found now that he was feeling worse. Tadashi replaced his helmet with his hat and rubbed his hands together.

" See! What did I tell you, we made it on time! " Looking back towards Hiro, he noticed a scowl on his face and watched him shuffle forward slowly with a look of discomfort. Tadashi's face fell and wondered if maybe Hiro had a reason he wanted to be late. " Hiro, hold up a sec…" Tadashi reached out and grasped his brother's arm. Hiro, obviously annoyed with this action, sighed. Determine to get him off his case, Hiro straightened up, fighting his bodies plead for being hunched over, and turned to look at Tadashi with his ever so famous smirk.

" Tadashi, you were the one saying how late we are, and now you want to talk? *tsk* No time Bro, I gotta get to class."

Tadashi refusing to let go, attempted to look past Hiro's act and instead, returned his smirk with a serious look. " Hiro, we have a few minutes. Is there something bothering you? I mean, you wouldn't get up this morning, hardly had breakfast, and you were determined to be late to school". Tadashi took a breathe and studied Hiro's face for any reaction, but found none. " Look, I know we don't usually talk about it, and haven't had to in a while, but is there some reason you don't want to go to school today? … are… are there people who bully you here? Or are you nervous for something? Is there something going on that I should know about?"

Wrong. You're so wrong.

Hiro shook his head and chuckled a little. He reached up to release his arm from Tadashi's hand.

" Seriously Tadashi? I'm fine. Just a little overtired this morning and would rather wake up slowly with a walk, not speeding down the road. You worry way too much bro~ chill out! " Hiro gave a quick bound backwards and attempted to change the mood completely. " Now lets go! I want to get these classes over with so I can get home and finally have that cinnamon roll!" Peeking back at Tadashi, his worried look was replaced with a look of relief, and shook his head.

" Alright alright, sorry for worrying so much…and for making you get on the bike. But if you weren't such a knucklehead then I wouldn't have too!" He playfully nudged Hiro's head with his hand, and made his way inside. " Get to class, I'll meet you right here at 3. And don't be late! I've got to get to the store before it closes for Aunt Cass, so keep your eye on the clock"

Hiro playfully pushed Tadashi's hand away and made his way inside towards his class. Once out of Tadashi's view, Hiro released a breath he didn't know he was holding, and leaned his back against the wall. He really was starting to feel worse. His head was producing a dull ache, and his body still felt achy and exhausted. Not to mention that the still felt gross on the inside and that drive didn't help. He was happy though, that he successfully got Tadashi off his case. He felt slightly bad for not telling him the truth, but it wasn't like he was blatantly lying to him. He really was overtired, and blamed what he felt on that. Besides, he was sure that as the day progressed, he would feel back to normal.

Taking a deep breath, Hiro walked towards his first class.

\- - - Now, back to the present - - -

After successfully averting all his fellow students looks, Hiro made a point to look more awake then what he felt. He managed through his other classes fine, then on his free time, he took a quick nap in hopes of relieving his headache and churning stomach. When lunch hour arrived, Hiro made sure to try to eat something, figuring that having an empty stomach was just making it feel worse, and after eating half a sandwich and some soup, he actually did feel a little better. Now though, during this lecture that was suppose to go one for another hour, his sluggish feeling returned and now he felt worse this he did this morning.  
One more hour, He thought, Then I can get home and sleep this away properly. Hiro, as smart as he was, wasn't the best at knowing what his body needed. He thought sleep was the best medicine, and while correct in some cases, it doesn't fix everything.

The lecture droned on for another 30 min and Hiro reached his breaking point. He couldn't sit there any longer. He couldn't. There was no way. He needed to move, and he needed to move now. After this lecture, he had one hour left of working in the lab and he was home free. He debated asking to leave, but how? Ask to go to the infirmary? No. Out of the question. The last thing he needed was Tadashi somehow finding out he was there. Make a scene and just walk out? Maybe play it really bad and run to the bathroom? no…Running out of options, and too groggy to care anymore, Hiro let his exhaustion take the better of him, and ended up falling asleep for the rest of the class.


	2. Chapter 2

_Hot. It was too hot. Really, really hot. Heat rose in front of Hiro's face, forcing him backwards and resulting in colliding with the hard concrete below. The smell of smoke and burning plastic filled his nose, and he struggled to breath._

 _As grey colors filled his vision, he could hear the faint cries of people. Familiar people._  
 _Help! ..'em out!_  
 _ge- er outta 'ere_

 _-amada_

 _some-one 'as to he-_

 _hamada_

 _GET TH-EM 'OUTA THE-ERE!_

 _M - HAMADA.._

 _" MR. HAMADA!"_

Hiro bolted awake, pulling the piece of paper off his face. The lecture hall was nearly empty, signaling the class was over. Hiro cringed his neck to look up at the professor, who held a less then amused look on his face.

" I'm glad to see that this lesson held such meaning to you Mr. Hamada" Hiro released a sigh, and actually felt more distressed then refreshed. Looking around the room, the few students that sat near him and looked over his way, then hurried out the door.

"I'm sorry professor, I guess I'm just really tired…."

"Sorry, won't make up for the fact that you missed some valuable information regarding circuitry and while I'm well aware you may " Already know this" but there's no need for me to have you take up the seat of a student who actually wants to be here and listen to what I have to say." Hiro bit his lip, wishing for him to go away. Rolling his eyes slightly, he continued to 'listen'.  
" I would like you to write me a 5 page report on circuitry, and please do remember to mention what an electronic circuit is composed of."

Hiro shut his eyes as the professor made his way back to his desk. Forgetting about his aching body, he quickly scooped up his belongings and made his way out the doors. The last hour that remained was his lab time to work on projects, and that was totally out of the question. Technically, he could go home at this hour, but Tadashi would not be impressed with his just leaving like that without him. It's not like Tadashi knew he wasn't feeling good. If anything, he would think Hiro was upset with him with how hes been acting towards him today.

Hiro settled on spending the rest of his day outside Tadashi's lab in the designated lounge area. It wasn't much, but there was a chair that he could rest in, Tadashi would be busy at work and wouldn't run into him anyways.

Making his way over to the building, Hiro quickened his pace and began running in his head how stupid the paper he had to write was going to be.

The building was reached without incident. Determined to locate a place to rest, Hiro made his way to the labs, but was stopped short when he heard the voices of his friends. He could hear Fred arguing with Gogo about how her electromagnetic bike needed more pizzaz and how she couldn't care less about his option. Wasabi was talking with Honey Lemon and in the mix of all the voices, the voice of Tadashi was loud and clear. It was obvious the group had all met in the lounge and were having a fun visit, talking about their projects and random things. Hiro couldn't go in there. He didn't want to talk with anyone. He loved being with the group and hanging out with his brother and everyone don't get him wrong, but he really just wanted quiet, and didn't want any prying questions. He was afraid he looked like shit, and his friends, especially Wasabi, were very perceptive. Tadashi he could probably get past, but not Wasabi. Deciding to play it safe, Hiro chose to spend his last hour sitting in the library.

\- - -

Shit shit shit.

Hiro ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He was late, again. It was 3:15. classes were well over and he was suppose to meet Tadashi at 3 in the entrance. God, was he dead. With phone in hand Hiro didn't even read the 3 text messages and 2 missed calls from Tadashi. He knew exactly what they said, and wasted no time even opening them up. With the entrance in view, he could see a very angry looking brother talking with 2 students and Wasabi. Swallowing hard, Hiro quickly approached the group and only then did Tadashi turn around with an exasperated look plain on his face. The two students took that as a sign and shuffled away. Tadashi didn't just look furious, but also concerned. He pinched between his eyes and let out a sigh Hiro knew he was holding in for awhile…15 min to be exact.

" Hiro…I'm not even going to ask where you were! I was looking everywhere for you! Why didn't you answer your phone?! You were suppose to be Here. At. 3:00.!" Emphasizing his frustrations with tapping his hands together with every syllable. Tadashi didn't even give Hiro a chance to reply. He shoved his helmet in his hands and pointed to the moped. " And YES, you are riding. No exceptions. We have to make it to the store before it closes. Honestly Hiro, I feel like you like making me stress"

Hiro didn't say a word. His head was absolutely pounding from his run, and he felt like the world around him was spinning, He absolutely did not want to go, but He didn't feel like arguing. He was now responsible for almost making them late twice today, and he did feel bad. He didn't mean to fall sleep again in the library, he had just meant to sit in the quiet and rest his eyes alittle. He was lucky the kid at the table next to him accidentally left his phone on, and a loud ringing rang through the quiet library. Hiro looked utterly defeated as he adjusted his helmet and climbed on the back of the moped. Wasabi watched in silence as Hiro hung his head and Tadashi continued to spew words at him. Tadashi then turned towards Wasabi " Sorry man, I'll give you a call later and we can work on those plans okay? I gotta run."

"Ohh, hey it's no problem." Wasabi never took his eyes off Hiro. " There's plenty of time, no rush. Nice to see you , Hiro"

Hiro looked up and offered a weak smile. With that, Tadashi pulled away from his friend and made a mad dash to the store, leaving Wasabi to stare after him, and a defeated looking brother.

\- - -

" What was that Hiro?! Seriously? You couldn't wait another 3 minutes? "

Hiro slammed open the door of the cafe and stormed inside, leaving Tadashi behind. Anger was plastered on the kid's face and teeth clenched shut. He was done. This day was well over, and needed to end. He walked briskly, eyes forward, towards the stairs leading up to their living area completely ignoring the friendly welcome back from the customers. Tadashi came straggling in after Hiro with an irritated expression plastered on his face. He carried in the grocery bag and dragged his school bag behind him. Grunting with effort at trying to juggle everything at once, his expression relaxed as he saw Aunt Cass come around the corner to welcome her nephews home.

" Welcome back boys! How did your day go?" Wiping her hands on her apron, she turned towards her youngest nephew "Hiro? Honey how was y-" Only to be stopped short as she saw him halfway up the stairs already.

Hiro stopped, not bothering to turn around. He took a deep breath and muttered " It was fine." Not bothering to give her time to respond, Hiro quickly made his way up the remaining stairs and out of sight.

Turning to look at Tadashi and seeing the grocery bag, Cass made her way over to him to take her things.

" Thanks sweetie. Whats got Hiro upset? Bad day at school?" Cass turned to look where Hiro disappeared, her face full with mild concern. Tadashi, not wanting to worry her anymore, changed the mood.

" He's probably just mad at me for getting mad at him. He'll be fine, just give him time to relax"

" … Wait, why did you get mad at him? Did something happen?"

" He's just insistent on making me late in every way he can today." Tadashi rubbed a hand down his face. " Don't worry about it, he'll be fine once you feed him."

Aunt Cass smiled at this comment. " Well, alright. But if anything is going on with him, I want to know. I won't have my boys being mad at each other you hear me?" Cass waved a little finger in front of Tadashi's face, and he gave her a smile.

" Ha ha, don't worry Aunt Cass" Tadashi patted her hand down, and hoisted his bag up to his shoulder. " I'll go apologize to him" Tadashi waved hello to the familiar customers and made his way up the stairs.

At his departure, Cass quickly turned around to mention one more thing " Don't forget your bike is getting that wheel replaced tomorrow, so If you need the truck, the keys are on the shelf. Ohh! and dinner will be ready in an hour If you could tell Hiro please. In the meantime, why don't you both grab one of my cinnamon buns? Fresh out of the oven!"

Tadashi chucked, and grabbed two from the counter. " Thanks Aunt Cass, I will, and I'll be sure to tell him" On that note, Tadashi made his way up the stairs. Cass looked fondly after her nephew, then turned to finish her work day.

Tadashi reached the kitchen and put Hiro's bun on a plate, putting his in the fridge. He wasn't very hungry right now, he could wait till dinner. Looking around their living space, he noticed Hiro was no where to be found. He must be upstairs in their room. Tadashi grabbed the plate and turned to make his way upstairs. He was going to apologize to Hiro, but first he wanted to know why he had behaved that way in the store. Hiro's been grumpy today no doubt, but that didn't mean he had to turn his bad mood on Tadashi.

Making his way upstairs, he entered their shared room. Hiro was perched in front of his computer, not really looking like he was doing anything. He held a pencil in his hand and a scrap of untouched paper laid on the desk. His head was rested in his hand and he carried a disappointed look. Walking over to the desk, Tadashi put the cinnamon roll down. Hiro glanced over at it quickly, but turned away from it. Tadashi didn't know this, but there was no way Hiro could stomach that right now.

Tadashi bit his lip quickly, and attempted to lighten the heavy mood in the room. " Aunt Cass said dinner should be ready in an hour, but wanted you to have this to tide you over" He said with a chuckle. Seeing Hiro turn away from it, Tadashi's face fell and he let out a sigh. He turned to sit on Hiro's bed.

" Hiro, listen, I think we should talk, I just want to kn-"

Hiro spun around briskly to face his brother. " I'm sorry, okay? There, you don't need to say anything. I'm sorry for making you almost late this morning, sorry 'bout making you late to the store, and I'm sorry for dropping the eggs. _I'm sorry!_."

Tadashi took a deep breath. " Hiro, that's not what I'm talking about..though while we are apologizing, I'm also sorry about being short with you all day" Tadashi cleared his throat and looked at Hiro, who's face showed no hints at accepting the apology or that he was listening at all. He went on. "But clearly something is bothering you, or you wouldn't of thrown a fit at the-"

" I wasn't _throwing a fit_ " Hiro exclaimed. " The eggs slipped from my hand and you freaked out. It was an accident! You didn't need to make a big deal about it"

" Hiro, I didn't need to make a big deal if you didn't just stare at the mess! And then run out of the store like that without even apologizing to the owner for dropping them! You just ran out and left someone else to clean it up without even helping. _That's_ why I was upset."

* * *

 _Hiro held the eggs that Tadashi handed him as they waited in line at the checkout. God, his stomach and head were killing him. The mixed smells in the store didn't help. The lady in front of them had pounds of freshly ground beef and other meats thats made Hiro want to empty his stomach. He turned away to avoid the scene when he bumped into the person waiting behind them._

 _" Whoops, watch out kid. Don't want to drop those"_

 _Frustrated by the way the man talked down to him like he was a child, Hiro turned back towards Tadashi while the lady was packing the meat up. The way it moved and bled made Hiro feel woozy, and without any warning, the eggs slipped from his hands and fell to the floor, smashing every one._

 _" Hiro! What's the matter with you?!" Tadashi bent down to pick up the egg carton, now sopping wet with egg yolk. " Look at this mess! ugh, its everywhere.."_

 _Hiro stared at the mess. The yolk swam with the whites in a pile, and the mess spread all over the tile floor. The sight of the moving yolks made Hiro's stomach churn for the worst as bile crept up his throat. The sight nauseated him, and he couldn't take it. Turning to leave, Hiro was stopped by a rather mad Tadashi who held on to the sleeve of his sweatshirt._

 _" Where do you think you're going?! Help me clean this up! I'm so sorry sir.." Tadashi began picking up the shells as the man made his way around the counter to assist in cleaning the mess and exclaiming that accidents happen, and it was no big deal. Hiro knew he couldn't stay and see and smell the eggs on the floor any longer. With no other option, he ripped his sleeve away from Tadashi's grasp, and made a mad run for the door. He listened as Tadashi's angry voice calling his name faded, and took a deep breath in the cool fresh air to let his stomach calm down. The ride home was less then pleasant as Hiro refused to talk when Tadashi pushed for answers, and sat in silence as the older brother very angrily drove home._

* * *

Hiro shook his head slightly to get the scene out of his mind. Tadashi was right, he should have apologized right away and helped clean up. Under any other circumstance, he would have! but he really thought that what he was feeling today would pass with a good nights sleep, and didn't want to worry Tadashi saying he wasn't feeling good. Not that having Tadashi be mad at him today was any better, but he was usually quick to forgive, especially when it came to Hiro. He slumped back In his chair turning slightly, avoiding Tadashi's look of concern, and muttered quietly " I know. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that."

Tadashi felt bad. Hiro really did look upset with what happened. He knows Hiro is a good kid, and wouldn't normally behave that way. Now things were taking a strange turn, something was definitely wrong. Grabbing the arms of the chair, he turned it so Hiro could face him head on. Taking ahold his chin gently to make him look up at him, Tadashi's face fell and he studied Hiro's face. Despite the questionable and irritated look Hiro was giving him, he noticed his features for the first time today. He had deep, blue bags forming under his eyes, which were starting to look a little glazed over. His skin was cold to the touch and dry. To be frank, the kid was starting to look like him during finals week. _Maybe these classes were getting to be a bit too much for him._

" Look at me Hiro, what's wrong? And don't tell me it's nothing. You've been acting off all day." Tadashi slid a hand up to Hiro's forehead. " You're not getting sick, are you?"

Hiro pulled back away from Tadashi and grabbed his wrist to pull his hand off his head. This was pointless, a good nights sleep was all he really needed.

" Tadashi, please. I'm just tired. Like, _really_ tired. I think I just went from no sleep, to too much too quickly and it threw me off. School was long and I ended up falling asleep during one of my lectures, so the professor gave me an extra assignment. That's why I was in a bad mood. I didn't mean to take it out on you, it's just I've been screwing up a lot today and you've been there pointing it out, so I lashed out. I'm fine, I just need to sleep and try again tomorrow.

Tadashi actually seemed satisfied with that answer. For the most part, that was the truth to the whole day, he just skipped the part that his body felt off. Tadashi backed off and leaned back on to the bed, his solemn face lifting back into a smile. " Okay, okay. I understand. Well, like I said, I'm sorry for snapping at you." He stood up and ruffled Hiro hair, which he knew he detested. " And thank you for telling me, you had me worried there, Bonehead. You can get started on that extra assignment after dinner. In the meantime, why don't we play a game while we have the chance? I don't have anything major to do tonight."

Hiro was actually not up to playing anything at all. He really just wanted to sit at his desk and sketch a couple ideas down till an appropriate time for sleep rolled around, but he appreciated Tadashi's gesture to clear the bad air between them and bond again. He hasn't really had the chance to spend time with Tadashi in a while. On that note, Hiro stood up and followed his brother downstairs into the family room.


	3. Chapter 3

Dinner was not a good time. After Aunt Cass finished setting the table full of her chicken wings, Tadashi helped put the rest of the food on the table, leaving Hiro to pour the drinks. He couldn't eat this. He couldn't. He knew for a fact that would not sit with him well, but he couldn't refuse food again. Tadashi would start questioning him again and thinking there was more to his story then what he was telling. And Aunt Cass would probably start to pry as well. This is the last thing he had to muster through before he could end his day. And besides, he really hasn't eaten anything all day.

Managing to finished most of what was on his plate, the boys cleaned up the kitchen while Aunt Cass went down to the cafe to put the chairs up and sweep the floor. The cafe was closed, but she left the finishing up till after she had fed the family. After the kitchen was clean,Hiro went straight upstairs and into the bathroom. He felt like he needed to throw up and get everything out of his stomach. He knew he would feel a little better. Thinking about things that nauseated him, like the eggs from earlier, he set off his gag reflex and emptied his stomach into the toilet.

Tadashi settled down at his work desk. Pulling out the papers in his bag he began to get working on the preparations for a new project. A great one. His biggest yet! He didn't know what the end result was going to be, but he knew that the starting plans for this project was going to make this a very long process. He began with writing lists of medical procedures and sketching out basic ideas for what a robotic nurse would look like. It had to be soft and likable, not sharp and intimidating looking. He started doodling pictures of a final look when he heard Hiro coming in from the bathroom. He disappeared pretty quickly after dinner and hadn't seen him since. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Hiro place himself in front of his computer again, and opened up a word document to begin writing his stupid five page paper. Leaving him alone to do his own thing, Tadashi got up and slide the divider screen that separated their rooms, closed. He then focused back to his own project at hand, excitement churning in him as he began to shape out his creation using soft robotics.

Hiro typed as quickly as he could to finish asap. Writing about simple circuitry was a joke, but at least he could fudge the whole thing out quickly. After emptying his stomach in the bathroom, he had decided to take a quick shower to help him feel rejuvenated. He did feel a little better after vomiting, but his stomach still had an ache to it and his body and head were throbbing. He really just needed to finish this and get to bed. It was pushing 9:30, and he didn't want to be up past 10. Stretching out his last few sentences, and reiterating what he already said for the 3rd time, He just managed to make five pages and called it quits. He could print it tomorrow, he didn't care anymore, his day was over. He then turned towards his bed and without even pulling down the covers, he passed out and was out like a light within 10 minuets.

\- - -

Tadashi looked to his clock. 10:24, it was getting late. Hiro should be getting to bed if he needed rest so badly. Sliding open the divider, and expected to see Hiro at his desk, but instead, found him on his bed, dead to the world. .. _what the? Knucklehead can't even get himself to bed properly_. Tadashi strolled over to the other side of the room and began to menuver his brother slowly around so he could pull the blankets down and get him into bed. Even sleeping, the kid still looked exhausted, and was breathing heavily. After getting him settled, Tadashi sat down on the edge of the bed and looked at his brother. He ran his fingers once through his hair and wondered when it was that Hiro had grown up so fast. It felt like yesterday Hiro was running around screaming for Dashi as he searched for his brother in a rigorous game of hide and seek. He missed the carefree days growing up in the cafe, sneaking food and making a mess of things. Aunt Cass would affectionally yell at them as they made trouble in her cafe, though it only brought joy to the faces of the older customers. Hiro was so young and lively then, nowadays he was tired and kinda grumpy.

Tadashi, while proud of his brother for everything that he has accomplished in his life so far, had not liked that his brother grew up too quickly. Hiro seemed like he had his childhood ripped away as he was thrown into advanced class after advanced class. Constantly pushed up the latter of childhood, and further away from kids his own age. Tadashi too, was forced to grow up quickly. Being the older brother after their parents passed away, Tadashi took responsibility over Hiro and strived to become a roll model for brother. Aunt Cass was great and made sure the boys did things other kids did, trying to give them both the childhood they almost completely lost, but at least Tadashi had hung out with kids his own age most of the time. He was more social then Hiro was, who did nothing other then cling to his brother growing up. Hiro missed out on a lot of opportunities to learn about kids his age and just take the time to grasp life slowly. When Hiro got accepted into SFIT, he was estactic, but made sure to have Hiro take some easier classes with his advanced ones. That way, he wouldn't be saddled with so much work and could try to focus on being a kid for just a little longer. Hiro never understood that, but Tadashi figured he would thank him one day. Sighing deeply, Tadashi stared at his sibling with nothing short of an intense love. He ran his fingers through his hair once more, tucked the blankets up to his chin, and quietly made his way back to his side of the room. Turning off his lights, Tadashi settled down into his bed and let his mind wander him into a deep sleep.

* * *

 _Small fingers reached out to grasp someone, anything! The heat… the burning..it was all too much. One hand reached out into the sea on smoke, fingers creating whips as the smoke pushed and pulled with the movement. Scalding…melting…it was so hot.._  
 _Finally, a cloth material was felt, and the fingers intertwined with the fabric for dear life._

 _-omeone 'as to 'elp_

 _What? I can't understand you!_

 _ome-…t…help…_

 _Wait! I can't hear you!_

 _Pulling at the cloth harder, the sweat on the fingers made it harder and harder to hold on._

 _It was so hot.._

* * *

Hiro lurched his upper body forward as he violently woke up. He was hot all over, and sweat beaded on his forehead. His breath came is gasps as he clenched the front of his shirt. God he was so hot. Trying to settle down, he swallowed and rubbed the sweat from his face. It was at that moment, he heard a stir from across the room, and the divider between the two slid open.

Tadashi peeked his head out and looked over to the other side of the room. Hiro was sitting up in his bed, panting. Quite obviously, he had just waken up from a nightmare. " Hiro?.." Making his way over to the bed, he glanced at the clock on the wall. 2:28 AM. Not a great time to be awake. Hiro sat in his bed, trying to calm his breathing and looked up at Tadashi who was making his way over towards his side of the room. Hiro closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He didn't want Tadashi up at this time worrying over him.

" Hey, are you okay?" Tadashi walked to the side of the bed and sat down. Hiro was always a little uncomfortable when Tadashi went into mother mode. It was nice that he cared, but still…He didn't want to cause anyone to worry over him.

" I..I'm fine Tadashi..It..It was just a bad dream…" Hiro took a few more deep breaths, successfully calming down his racing heart. He looked up at Tadashi who was looking at him with empathy. " I'm okay, really."

" Do you want to talk about it?" Tadashi asked as he smoothed the covers on his bed down.

"No…Thanks, but I don't even remember it anyways. Just go back to bed. I'm sorry I woke you"

" No need to apologize little bro, it happens. I'm just glad you woke up out of it."

Hiro use to have a hard time getting out of a nightmare when he was a little kid. He would get what Tadashi would call night terrors, and he would be stuck in them for sometimes hours. There was nothing Tadashi could do but try to comfort him as he laid thrashing in his bed. Aunt Cass often heard the noise from her bedroom, and would either come up to relieve Tadashi of his post so he could get some sleep, or if it wasn't too bad, take Hiro downstairs into her bed. As he got older, he grew out of it, but Hiro has always had such a wild imagination, it took some time to break the habit.

Tadashi rested his hand on Hiro's shoulder and gave a squeeze. " If you need anything, let me know okay?" Hiro half smiled and nodded at him. Taking his leave, Tadashi stood up and went back to his side of the room. Hiro watched him go, and nestled back down into bed. He still felt hot, and his throat burned fiercely. He was exhausted and fell asleep within five minuets of laying back down. Little did he know, that was the first of 3 times he would wake up that night for the same dream. Tadashi woke back up with every one of them, giving both boys a long night.

\- - -

Hiro was exhausted. His alarm rang and he didn't even bother hitting the snooze button, for he was already awake. After the third time that night waking up to a dream he just couldn't remember, the poor kid hardly got any rest in between. And whats worse, was that Tadashi had sat up with him. They were only up about 30 minuets each time, but that still affected his sleep, and left him pretty tired this morning as well. Hiro sat up and pulled his legs over the side of the bed. He felt awful. Not just tired, but he hurt all over. His head was already pounding, and his stomach felt the same as yesterday. His muscles ached and hurt all over, and his throat was dry. Hiro rested his forehead on his palm and tried to clear his throat. His skin was a little warm to the touch too. Maybe he should stay home today…It would do him wonders to get a days rest and not worry about classes. Thinking it over, he heard water shutting off and realized Tadashi was in the shower. He couldn't skip school and let Tadashi go by himself. He was tired too after all, and had stayed up with Hiro last night. It wouldn't be right for Tadashi to struggle through the day alone since it was Hiro's fault he would be tired.

Hiro slowly got up out of bed, and I mean slowly. His head pulsed with every movement so he moved gingerly. He slipped on his t-shirt and pants, finishing it off with his hoodie, and sat down on the bed to put on his socks. At that time, Tadashi emerged from the bathroom, all ready for the day and a towel around his neck. He was surprised to see Hiro dressed and almost ready as well.

" Hiro? I didn't think you would be up yet. You usually hit the snooze button till the last minute" Tadashi made his way back to his side of the room to put his clothes down.

Hiro shrugged his shoulders. " I was already up, figured I could get started earlier"

Tadashi barely heard Hiro's quiet voice. Setting his things down, he strolled back across the room, wanting to get a look at Hiro, but aiming for his shoes. The boy looked tired. Tadashi was pretty tired himself, but he didn't care. Sure he was up with Hiro, and a little longer after he fell asleep each time to make sure he was resting, but it didn't bother him to do that.

" … You know Hiro.." Tadashi started, keeping his eyes on his shoes. " I was just thinking, maybe you should stay home today. You didn't get a lot of sleep last night, and you looked exhausted.."

" I'm fine Tadashi…you were up too. Besides, I have another test today, and I want to work on my project I really haven't gotten to work on the past few days." Hiro finished putting on his socks and stood to leave, but was blocked by Tadashi. He put a hand on Hiro's shoulder, and bent down to his level.

" Hiro, I'm serious. I think you should stay home today. You really don't look like you feel yourself. I'm fine this morning, don't worry about me, but you could use a good rest." Hiro avoided Tadashi's eyes and looked down at his feet instead. He really did want to stay home, but he couldn't. He didn't want to miss school, and he didn't want Aunt Cass to make a fuss and close the cafe on his behalf. As the silence went on, Tadashi took a deep breath and placed his hand on Hiro's forehead. It was warm to the touch, no fever, but warm. Tadashi's face fell at this and he straightened up.

" I'm telling Aunt Cass your going to stay home today to rest. You feel a little warm too, I don't want yo-"

" Tadashi, please! I have to go to school!" Hiro backed away from Tadashi and stared up at him wide eyed. " It's really not bad, I'll be fine as soon as I get moving. I really just don't want to miss anything"

Tadashi stared back at him, brows pinched with concern " Hiro…I understand, but what if you get worse during the day? What if this is actually something and your going to make it worse with you going to school? I really don't want you to push yourself more then you have."

Hiro continued to stare at Tadashi. He wasn't going to back down from this. Tadashi sighed and pinched between his eyes. He hated when he got like this.  
" … Fine. I won't tell Aunt Cass. But listen to me! If at all during _any_ time of the day you don't feel well, I want you to let me know. Or go to the infirmary or something okay? At least this way, you are excused and you could get work ahead of time."

Hiro released a breath he didn't know he was holding, and a look a relief washed over his face.  
" For sure! Thanks bro. And I promise, I will go to bed way early tonight." Hiro slipped past Tadashi, grabbed his shoes and a flash drive that contained his five page paper to print at school, and walked downstairs. Tadashi watched his brother go, still worried. He grabbed his shoes and went downstairs in silence.

As crappy as Hiro was feeling, he still managed to walk down the stairs with a smile on his face. Maybe it was in the moment, but he still felt like he had won a great battle. Tadashi managed to let Hiro have his way and go to school anyways. Of course, Hiro didn't actually want to go to school, but it was one of those little victories that let him have his way. He was sure he would feel normal as the day went on if he could just keep a good attitude. And not gonna lie, he really did want to work on his project. The classes were boring, but the free time he got to spend in the labs with his brother and friends made it all worth it. He really felt like he belonged there, and that he could have anything at his fingertips. His smile crept away from his face though, and instead was faced with the scent of food. The smell of eggs and toast hit him hard, then the natural smells of the bakery. Hiro slowed his pace as he entered the kitchen, and saw the food on the table, waiting for them. Looking at the eggs reminded him of the event at the store yesterday, and his stomach twisted. He brought a hand to his mouth and bit his thumbnail. He still wasn't hungry, and really didn't want eggs. Aunt Cass went through the trouble of making it tho…and Tadashi wouldn't stand for Hiro skipping breakfast again without giving away that he wasn't feeling well.

Tadashi came around the corner and set his shoes and bag down before the next set of stairs. He immediately went right to the coffee pot to pour himself the hot beverage. Fixing it to his liking, he grabbed the juice, poured 2 glasses, and sat down to eat and read the paper. Hiro sauntered over to the table and hesitantly sat down. He stared at his food like it began moving. He glanced up at Tadashi, who was trying to balance eating and reading at the same time, and figured he probably wasn't paying any attention to him. Hiro took that opportunity of distraction to start eating a piece of toast, and slide his food around on his plate. He hated wasting the food, but it would be worse to eat it and feel more like shit, only to throw it up.

As soon as Tadashi had taken his last bite, Hiro stood up to bring his food over to the trash to scrape out the rest. He had managed one egg and toast. Tadashi still remained at the table, finished his last article. Hiro walked over to grab his plate for him, determine to show him that he felt fine, and brought it over to the counter. Tadashi placed his newspaper down and began folding it up.

" You didn't eat too much this morning"

Hiro walked over to his shoes, avoiding Tadashi's comment, and sat on the stairs to put them on. Tadashi sighed, and stood up. He grabbed an apple from the counter, and dropped it in Hiro's lap as he collected his own shoes.

Hiro rolled his eyes at the sight of the fruit. " Bro, I really don't need this. I ate enough" Hiro held the apple in his hand and twisted it around.

" Eating just toast, again, is not a nutritional breakfast. I know last night was long for you, so I understand you may not feel like eating this morning, but please just eat it okay?" Tadashi finished putting on his last shoe and turned to look at Hiro.

" I'm serious, eat it."

Hiro looked down at his apple and and muttered a small " Fine" and put the apple in his mouth as he put on his last shoe. Tadashi didn't like to force him to eat, but he really didn't have much of a choice. Hiro hardly ate yesterday, and to skip eating again was not good for his body. Mixed with the lack of sleep, it was a recipe for disaster.

The boys made it downstairs, Hiro still chewing on the apple. Aunt Cass said her goodbyes to her nephews and the boys started for school. Tadashi didn't grab the keys, and headed out the door. That meant that the boys were going to walk today, but this time, Hiro really didn't want too. His body hurt more then it did yesterday, and with his headache, he kinda just wanted to ride instead.

Once outside, Tadashi started up to the sidewalk, and Hiro turned and headed to the truck, since Tadashi's bike was going to be gone for the day. The older Hamada noticed Hiro's lack of presence and turned to see him committed to riding instead. Rubbed the back of his neck, Tadashi turned and sighed. " Yesterday you wanted to walk, now you want to take the car?"

"..so…is that a no?" Hiro questioned. He threw the apple core away and looked towards the road.

" No..we can take it. It's just…Hiro, are you sure you really want to go?" He studied Hiro face for any sign of second guessing his decision, but as usual, He was showing nothing.

Before Tadashi could push the subject anymore, Hiro walked over to the truck, opening the door.  
" Yes, Tadashi, I'm going. _I'm fine_. I just feel like riding today." Hiro jumped in the truck, and impatiently pointed to the drivers side. Tadashi rolled his eyes and ran back inside to grabbed the keys, letting Aunt Cass know they were taking the vehicle. He climbed into the car, and heading off to school.

Hiro didn't want to do either. He didn't want to walk, and didn't want to drive for the sake of his stomach, but at least he could close his eyes and try to rest a little before getting there. Tadashi watched Hiro from the corner of his eye as they headed out. He knew Hiro must be exhausted after the long night last night. He can understand why he probably wanted to ride for that matter, just to save any energy he had for the events today would bring, Watching as his brother dozed off against the window, he looked at the clock and knew they still had a little bit of time. At that point, Tadashi decided to take the long way to school.

\- - -

By the time they arrived, Hiro was fast asleep against the window. Tadashi looked at him from the corner of his eye and parked the truck. He had spend as much time as he could driving around until the very last minute. He didn't really have the heart to wake him, but no choice, sorry bro. Tadashi pulled the keys out and reached over to gently shake his brothers shoulder.

" Hey, Hiro, we're here"

Hiro stirred a little, and slowly opened his eyes. At one, he realized that me must have fallen asleep, and jolted up in his seat. Tadashi withdrew his hand at the sudden action and was left staring at him. Hiro glanced over towards Tadashi, then out the window to see that they have arrived at their destination. Muttering a small _ohh_ and stretching quickly, both boys got out of the truck and collected their belongings. Tadashi came around to the passenger side and closed the door. Hiro started to walk away only to feel a hand grab at the hood of his sweatshirt.

"Ugh, really, Tadashi? What?!" Hiro threw his hands in the air to signify his annoyance. His brother just had get one more word in. Tadashi came around to the front and rolled his eyes.

"Calm down and just listen to me for a second, Bonehead." His smile faded and looked at Hiro again with all seriousness. He really hated when Tadashi got like this…too overprotective. The only reason he hated it was because he could see the worry his older brother was feeling, and the stress it put on him. Hiro really did appreciate the concern, but there was no need. He really wanted his brother to focus on the important things, like himself for once.

Tadashi fixed his eyes firmly on Hiro, and waiting for the kid to look at him. With slight hesitation, Hiro finally looked up. Tadashi could see misery written all over his face, and rested the back of his hand to his brothers cheek.

Hiro's eyes shifted and tried to pull away. With an irritated moan, he said his brothers name in a slight warning, whiny tone.

" I know, I know." Tadashi brought his hand down and brought it back to his shoulder. " Sorry, I just don't think this is a good idea, but i'll let you. Remember, If you start to feel really tired or not well…text me, come get me, or please go to the nurse-"

Hiro rolled his eyes and patted his brothers shoulder " Tadashi, _please_ stop worrying! I know, okay?" Hiro scooted around his brother and hoisted his backpack to his shoulders. "I'll meet you here at 3" He waved a quick goodbye and headed inside, too far away now to hear whatever it was Tadashi was trying to say.

Tadashi tried to call to him, but it was useless. Despite Hiro's more upbeat attitude, he could see he was miserable as much as he tried to hide it. He wasn't exactly stupid when it came to the human body and anything medical. Tadashi could see the bruising under Hiro's eyes, his pale skin, still warm to the touch. The way he slowly moved his head around and kept his eyebrows raised up or pinched signified his headache, and he was shaking slightly as if cold. His heavy breathing as he slept in the car was also a giveaway. Being the genius Hiro was, he was stupid to think someone as smart and observant as Tadashi was would fall for his acting.

Tadashi sighed loudly, and picked up his bag. He turned to leave when he saw the flash drive with that paper Hiro needed, laying on the seat. _Really, Hiro…I guess as long as I get it to him before his last class it should be fine…_

Grabbing the flash drive, Tadashi looked at the time, and had to make a run for his class.

\- - -

 _This was a mistake…such a mistake_. Hiro couldn't believe how fast this feeling was progressing. His first class went by okay, but by the end of his second class he felt like he had been run over by a car. He was convinced his headache had turned into a migraine, and his stomach was churning so badly. The breakfast he managed to get down, didn't want to stay down. As soon as class ended, he was the first one out. Rushing to the nearest bathroom, he forced open the door and felt a rush of relief that the room was empty. He ran to the toilet and immediately emptied out all of his breakfast. His stomach tightened and his muscles constricted as his stomach wrung out the last of its contents. The vomiting caused his head to pound so bad that tears pricked at his eyes. He laid his head on his hand, and remained on the floor, unsure of what to do.

 _Tadashi_ …he should call Tadashi, but Hiro really hadn't wanted to do that. It was only 11:30, way too early for him to leave now. Tadashi was only in his second class, and would be for another hour. And by now, the lunch rush was coming into the cafe, so he really didn't want to bother Aunt Cass. He would just wait it out, see if he would feel better enough to at least make it to the lab. Tadashi didn't really have classes much like Hiro did. Most of his class time, was lab time. He had a few lectures to attend, but his inventing was primarily what he did when he was at school. He would deff be in the lab by 12:30, then he had a short class to attend at 2, then by 2:30 he was back in the lab until at least 3, when all classes were done, and the labs were open till late.

Hiro didn't even know how much time had passed since he entered the bathroom. He knew his third class was well started, and figured he would just skip it. At this rate, he definitely was not going to eat lunch. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time. 11:47, he had been in the restroom for 17 minutes, and it felt like 5. He considered calling Tadashi and telling him he needed to go home. There was no way he could stay all day. As much as he really wanted to work in the lab, any loud noises were enough to give him vertigo. Not wanted to interrupt Tadashi in his class though, Hiro figured he would try to make it to his brothers lab and wait there. It would be quiet, and there was the old couch in the lounge area he could lie down on. Not knowing if his friends were there or not, he didn't care at this point. He needed to go.

Convinced he wasn't going to throw up anymore right now, Hiro slowly got to his knees and stood up. He kept his hands pressed firmly to his head, to try and prevent his headache from pulsing any more, and stumbled over to the sink. Looking in the mirror, he could see how Tadashi would be concerned. He rinsed out his mouth and washed the sweat off his face. His cheeks were bright red with what he felt was now a fever, and his eyes glazed over. He sighed deeply. Tadashi was going to be so mad, and probably blame himself for this. He tried to get him to stay home, and look what happened. Hiro didn't even get to work on anything, or hand in that stupid paper. Shit, the paper…He felt his pockets but couldn't feel the flash drive. Great. I probably left it in the truck. Feeling defeated, Hiro slowly made his way out of the bathroom and entered the hallways. At least with classes going on, there wouldn't be as many people.


	4. Chapter 4

Tadashi was sitting in his second class of the day, not really paying attention. He just wanted to get to his lab to work. These little classes were very slow, unfortunately, mandatory. He was also preoccupied with how Hiro's day was going, and when was a good time to get him his flash drive. As long as he handed it in by the end of the day he should be fine, considering he doesn't fall asleep in class again and wind up with more extra work. Tadashi scribbled on the corner of his note sheet and considered texting Hiro. It was currently 11:22, Hiro's class would be ending soon, so he could probably wait to text him between classes. Hiro was getting pretty irritated with him though, with his constant prying and asking, but it was only because he's seen this before. He knew this was often the way Hiro acted, always pretending like things were never going on. He never talked about his problems, and never mentioned when he wasn't feeling well. Tadashi would just usually find out the hard way when he would wake up coughing hard or when he could hardly move anymore.

Tadashi was sometimes the same way though, so he wasn't ever truly surprised when Hiro did this. When it came to Aunt Cass, both boys never wanted to do anything that would worry her. they would hide their feelings until she would find out eventually, the hard way, and that worried her even more to the point where she blame herself for "not paying attention". It was never a win win. Trying to focus on his work, and ignoring the nagging thoughts on his mind, He took a few more notes and did his best to focus. When it felt like a respectful amount of time had passed, Tadashi looked back to the clock. 11:50. He still had 40 minuets left. He contemplated texting Hiro again, but decided against it in the end. Hiro was insistent that he go to school, and he knew himself better then anyone, ( though Tadashi would still argue that) so he really didn't want to bother him more. He put the phone back in his pocket and decided he would stop worrying and focus on getting this class done.

Hiro walked outside of the main school, and heading to the Labs building. The sun beating down stung his eyes and the bright light wasn't helping his migraine. a few students has passed him with questionable looks, but he ignored them all or said he was fine, and kept walking. He just wanted to get there. Tadashi would probably be upset he was skipping classes instead of collecting work for his leave or texting him to let him know he was going to rest in the lab, and to come get him when he was done. At this point, he didn't care if Tadashi yelled at him the whole way home, or if he turned on his mother mode. He just wanted to lay down.

Entering the labs, still holding his head, Hiro squinted at the clock. 11:58. he had gotten there fast considering, but as quickly as time had flown by when he was in the bathroom, time had slowed way down now. He felt like he had been walking for 30 minutes. Either way, he was almost there, and crossed his fingers silently hoping the lab was empty.

It was not empty.

Most people were in their respected areas, so for the most part, it was bustling. Hiro considered that maybe that was best, so to keep attention off of him. His heart lurched though, and he quickly slide behind the wall. Wasabi was in the corner, working on something with lasers. Hiro remembered his mentioning he was working on a project like that, but it was still in the raw form of development. On the other side, Fred and Honey Lemon were deep in conversation. As to what it was about, Hiro didn't know, and quite frankly didn't care. Honey's face was a confused, sympathetic look that pretty much looked like she felt sorry for Fred, and Fred was talking with his hands so much, he was sure they would fall off. In short, Fred was probably trying to convince Honey of something that just wasn't realistic, or Fred wanted Honey to invent something, also, unrealistic.

Hiro would absolutely be interrupted if any one of his friends saw him. He was so close. He kept his head down and rounded the corner quickly, determine to make it to Tadashi's lab, and the lounge. Letting out a breath of relief, he managed to make it unseen. Lucky for him, no one was there. Looking towards the clock, the time read 12:05. He had a good 25 min before Tadashi would get there, that was enough time to get a quick nap. He turned off all lights, went straight to the couch, and crashed. Hiro Hamada was asleep in less then a minute.

* * *

Not being a student at SFIT, Fred loved to hang out at the labs when his friends were there. It was a good time either just talking, or watching them work and helping out in anyway. If neither were possible, well T.V and comic books were fine too. Fred, deep in conversation with Honey, broke away when he saw the door leading to Tadashi's lab swing closed. _Ohh man, maybe Tadashi got out early! My bud always needs his Fred time~_ Fred started towards the door, when something else caught his eye. A green light glowed from the corner of the labs. Wasabi had gotten his lasers up and running, and Fred wasted no time getting over there to check it out.

Fred started at the green lasers, still in a small form. One laser was about a foot long, and ran small on top of the work desk. Fred ran over, mouth wide open, to praise Wasabi's work.

"Ohh man! Thats some serious light dude! You could totally cut down a building with that stuff!"

Wasabi smiled and shook his head. " It's not quite that big yet, but it can do this." Wasabi dropped an apple down between the laser, successfully splitting it in two. Fred gasped, and insisted that Wasabi come up with a way to contain it into a sword hilt, so he could have a sword that could cut through anything. Wasabi, obviously annoyed with Fred's ridiculous suggestion, just shook his head.

"I'm serious man, you could totes do some serious stuff with that! Just think about it, construction workers would, like, kill for you to cut up big rocks for them and stuff! and like, you could carve so much stuff with it dude! and If you have any enemies you could totes-"

"Fred!" Wasabi sighed and turned his laser off. " Those are all good ideas, and i'll keep them in mind. in the meantime, could you text Tadashi and remind him that the needs to bring that formulas sheet with him for me?"

Fred perked up, face beaming. " Ohh dude, I can do better! I'll just go get it myself, he's totally in his lab right now" Fred turned to leave when Wasabi stopped him. Looking at his watch, it was only 12:10. Tadashi was still in class for another 20 minutes.

"Fred, Tadashi wont be here for at least 20 minutes, he's still in class."

" No way man, he's here! I saw someone go through to his lab, must be him! I'll brb dude." And with that, Fred bounded away. Wasabi watched him go, and stood there muttering to himself. … _Who could have gone into Tadashi's lab? He's still in classes unless it was Gogo. Or maybe Hiro?_. Wasabi was done for now anyways, so he quickly straightened up his area, and followed Fred.

Fred opened the doors to Tadashi's lab, and was confused as to why it was so dark in there.

"Yo, Tadashi, you here dude? Wasabi says he needs that pa-"

He was stopped short as he noticed Hiro, fast sleep on the couch. Whoops! Sorry little dude!. Fred quietly made his way over to the couch, but stopped short as Hiro stirred a little. His face was beaded with sweat, and his arms were wrapped around his stomach. A look of discomfort was plastered on his face, and his breathing was heavy. Fred watched Hiro in front of him, then slowly began to back out. He didn't look too good, and it made Fred a little nervous. He backed out of the room and closed the door. Turning around, he bumped into Wasabi.

"Fred! Is Tadashi actually in there? cause I don't think it's'-" Fred's eyes darted back to the door, and he quickly brought his finger up to his mouth and made a shushing sound, signaling to Wasabi to keep quiet.

Wasabi looked slightly irritated, and began to whisper instead " _What? what's in there? Is he taking a nap?_ "

 _"It's not Tadashi dude, It's Hiro!"_ Fred paused to look back towards the door, then back to Wasabi. " _He's sleeping on the couch, but I don't know man, he looks off._ "

" _Off? Does he look sick?_ " Wasabi asked with slight worry, as he crept past Fred and slowly opened the door. Letting his eyes adjust to the darkness, he spotted Hiro sleeping on the couch. Quietly walking in, he tiptoed over and took a look at the younger sibling. Seeing the same scene as Fred did, Wasabi's face fell concerned. He looked sick definitely, and very uncomfortable. Fred closed the door behind him and waited. Wasabi walked right up to Hiro, and carefully placed his hand on the younger Hamada's forehead. He was definitely burning up, and quickly withdrew his hand. Seeing his change in face, Fred walked up to Wasabi and looked at Hiro closer.

" You think we should text Tadashi?" Fred asked.

"Yeah, I think so. He's got class for another 15 minutes, but he better get down here."

Sending a text to his friend, Wasabi sat in the room with Hiro, and Fred went to go stand guard at the door in case anyone wanted in.

\- - -

16 minutes. Thats all Tadashi needed to sit through, then he could rush to the lab, see his friends, and finally get started working. _Maybe first I should run this flash drive to Hiro_. As if on cue, the phone is his pocket vibrated, signaling a text. Now, this text could be anything at all. but he was really nervous that it was from Hiro stating he was feeling sick or at the nurse. If he had to take Hiro home, that was no problem at all. He was just afraid he had to because he had too. That meant that Hiro was so sick that he's reached his limit, and that always scared Tadashi. Maybe he should have been tougher with him this morning and insisted he stay home..

Pushing his fears aside, he dug into his pocked as slipped out his phone. The text he had received was from Wasabi. Ohh good. He thought. He's probably reminding me to bring that formula sheet, which was already tucked away safely in his bag. Opening it up, he read the text that was not one he was expecting, and it made his blood run cold.

 _Hey dude,_  
 _Listen, don't freak out, but Hiro's here at your sleeping on the couch. He doesn't look too good. Fred and I just found him here, but he looks pretty sick and I'm sure he has a fever. You might want to come down here. I'm watching him, so feel free to wait after class, but I just thought I should let you know._

He knew it. He knew it! He knew it! _He knew it!_ Why on earth did he let Hiro leave the house this morning?! He knew he should have refused but he didn't listen. Now look at what happened!

Tadashi immediately stood up at his desk and grabbed his things. He walked out of the classroom, ignoring the professor and students confused look, and ran straight for his lab.

How could he be so stupid? Why would Hiro push himself to this point, and most importantly, Why had Hiro not texted him? A simple text of "Hey bro, I'm gonna lay down in your lab cause i don't feel good" Would have sufficed. At least It came from Hiro and he was letting him know. Not for him to find out through another person! Was he afraid to tell Tadashi? Was there something wrong where he just didn't want to tell his brother these things? Either way, he would get it out of him, but right now, he just wanted to get to his lab as quick as he can.

* * *

 _Reaching forward, Hiro tugged at the fabric as hard as he could. The heat seared through his fingers and traveled up his arm. He was on fire, he could feel it. The figure attempted to pull away, making Hiro's fingers grip tighter. His knuckles were white and his hand was going numb._

 _"-as to help-"_

 _"Please stop! I can't hear you!" Hiro cried as he felt his grasp beginning to ease up. The grey smoke dug deep into his lungs, threatening a cough to rip through his body. The longer he held on, the worse it felt._

* * *

Wasabi watched as the young teens face scrunched up and his hand tightened into a fist. _He must be having a bad dream_. He debated on waking him up, but honestly, he didn't know it that was a good idea. He really didn't know what to do about any of this. Hell, The kid should be resting, but if he's having a nightmare, couldn't this make it worse? Wasabi hummed in thought and decided instead to try and comfort the boy. Standing up out of his chair, Wasabi walked over to the couch, and perched himself on the edge. He didn't know if Hiro was a light sleeper or not, but he could at least try. Worse come to worse, he would just wake up and then they could have a talk.

Wasabi was, like Tadashi, a mother hen. He was always making sure everyone was doing the safe thing and cleaning up after a get together. He became fond of Hiro when he first met him. Inquisitive and pretty self confident, Hiro was the perfect addition to their group. The bond between the brothers was heartwarming, and seeing Tadashi's face light up when he would mention something amazing Hiro had done, made him smile. He was happy when his friends were happy. Not to mention that Hiro was just a cool, smart kid, and he loved to get into debates with him. Hiro was a lot of things Wasabi wasn't, and thats why they got along and respected each other so well. They rarely had disagreements, and when they did, they were playful. Hiro was immature, and Wasabi wasn't, simple as that.

Sitting on the corner of the couch, Wasabi hesitantly reached over to lightly rub Hiro's back. Keeping an eye on his face, he applied a little more pressure when he determined that he wouldn't wake up. Hiro's face didn't change to much, but Wasabi continued anyways, thinking this was really all he could do. Keeping an eye on the clock, and hoping he got his text, he waited for Tadashi.

\- - -

Tadashi burst through the lab doors, scanning the floor. Maybe, just maybe, Hiro was feeling better and was up and around. Not seeing him though, the small flicker of hope died, and he instead headed towards his lab. Honey looked up, and seeing Tadashi, waved to him. The older Hamada didn't seem to notice, and went right to the lab. Seeing him on a mission, she figured she could meet up with him in a few minutes. Fred was keeping a lookout for the brother, and relief washed over him as he spotted him.

" Dude, you here! I was totally just thinking that you were gonna come runn-"

"How is he?" Tadashi cut off Fred, and without even waiting for his answer, set his hand on his shoulder and gently pushed him aside so he could open the door.

The room was darker then usual. Scanning for the light switch, he went to go turn on the fluorescent lights when Wasabi quickly stopped him. Tadashi retreated his hand and let his eyes adjust to the sudden change. Seeing his friend and brother, he quietly walked over. Fred walked in, shutting the door behind him.

Tadashi walked up to his sleeping brother, and bent down to study him. Wasabi was still rubbing his back, but his face was more relaxed now. He still had sweat built up on his forehead, and arms still wrapped around his stomach. His knees were brought up, and breathing still heavy and uneven. Wasabi stopped rubbing his back, and stood up to give him more room. Tadashi placed a hand on the back of Hiro's neck, and another on his forehead. Not liking what he felt, he slid his hand down to his cheek and let it rest there. _Fever, check_. Tadashi looked over to Wasabi and Fred, who both held confused looks.

Fred was the first to speak. " Whoa dude, you like, totally flew in here fast!" Tadashi figured he probably looked like a mother worrying about her child, and probably a little overreactive too.

"Sorry, I guess I must look pretty erratic" Tadashi apologized, rubbing the back of his head in slight embarrassment. Wasabi empathized with his friend. Of course he would be worried, he had every right to be. If that were his brother, he would be much less collected then Tadashi was right now.

"No man, it's fine. I've just been sitting here with him" Wasabi gestured to Hiro, who's face had fallen a bit since Wasabi had stopped rubbing his back. Tadashi looked at his brother with worry, and took a deep breath. he spoke quietly.

"…So…?" He trailed off questionably, when Fred stepped up to take over.

"So, what totally happened was, I saw you go in here after checking out Wasabi's laser thing right? It's wicked cool by the way, it's up and running and he took this poor apple and completely-"

" Just..get to the point Fred.." Wasabi interrupted.

"Ohh yeah, so I saw you go in here, and Wasabi wanted me to text you about that paper, but I figured I would just come ask you! except.." Fred held an amazed look on his face " It totally wasn't you! It was smaller you! So I came in here and saw the kid all curled up on the couch, he looked like death, ya know? So I left and went to get Wasabi, who like, read my mind, and was right behind me the whole time!"

Wasabi cleared his throat, and looked at Tadashi, who was watching Fred intensely, keen on trying to pick up exactly what he was trying to explain. Wasabi figured he could take over from here.

" I came in, checked the kid out. He looked pretty much like this, but it looked like he was having a bad dream. I texted you, and waited with him while Fred watched the door. 3 minutes later you showed up. Sorry to drag you out of class" Wasabi finished his story.

" No, really it's ok. It was only a few min early." Tadashi sat on the edge of the couch and watched his brother sleep. If he was having a bad dream before, It looked to be ok now. Grateful to his friends for their help, he looked over to them. " Thanks for taking the time to watch him. How long has he been here?"

Fred answered first. " It was only like, 3 minutes before I came in, so hes probably been sleeping for at least 15 minutes"

Tadashi nodded and looked back to his brother, placing a hand on his shoulders and moved him on his back. His hand moved back up to his cheek, and he slowly began to call Hiro's name.


	5. Chapter 5

_"-iro"_

 _Hiro shifted as he tried to hold his breath from the smoke raging around his body. The smoke burned his eyes as he tried to pull the slipping fabric closer to himself. Flames felt like they were lapping up at his arms and his hands threatened to let go. He couldn't, he just couldn't._

 _He pulled the material closer to him, feeling the solid form of an arm begin to take shape. With that realization, he dug up a newfound energy, and clung with all his might, feeling for the hand. With the sleeve closer to his face, he could smell the ashy scent that clung to it, and a slight familiarity. Hiro closed his eyes and held the arm close, determine to never let go._

 _-omeone ha-s to hel-_

 _"-iro"_

 _-one has t-_

 _"Hi-iro"_

 _-has to h-_

 _"HIRO"_

 _-help_

" _ **HIRO!**_ "

Hiro jerked awake, wide eyes and panting. He couldn't make out where he was, but he felt slight pressure on both his shoulders, pinning him down.

"Hey! Hiro, you in there bud?"

Hiro blinked a couple of times and slowly, letting his mind slowly register what was happening. He was in the lab, laying on the couch. Looking up, the face of his older brother was staring down at him, wide eyed and worried. Hiro let out a noise of relief at the site of his brother. Tadashi noticed, but said nothing. Hiro's eyes shifted to behind him, where he made out the figures of Wasabi and Fred.

The younger Hamada tried to sit up, only to be gently pushed back down by the older one.

"Ohh no you don't little brother, your staying right there till we have a talk and figure out what's going on" Tadashi placed his hand on Hiro's knee. Hiro didn't even try to fight it. Tadashi opened his mouth to began speaking when the door opened, and in walked Honey and Gogo.

Honey, immediately seeing the scene in front of her, briskly walked over to the crowd. Gogo hung back looking around. She squinted in the darkness, and walked to the adjoining wall. "Why is it so dark in here?" she asked as she flipped on the switch before anyone could say otherwise. The room lit up immediately with bright fluorescent lights.

Hiro gasped in pain and brought his hands up to his head, curling back to his side and his knees to his chest. Tadashi jumped at the sudden movement, and quickly determined that he must have a migraine. Turning to Gogo to say something, Wasabi was already on the move.

" Shut it off!" He whispered loudly, and Gogo immediately reacted, shutting down the lights. Hiro groaned on the couch in pain, and Tadashi began rubbing his back making shushing noises.

" You're okay, you're okay….Hiro, I need you to look at me when you can"

Hiro shook his head slowly, but Tadashi was patient. No one said a word, only looked at each other. Gogo whispered a quick apology. Wasabi reassured her saying it was okay, she didn't know. No one knew it was that bad.

Hiro eventually slowly opened his eyes, the blinding pain slowly ebbing away from the shock. He looked over at Tadashi with a glazed look. Tadashi couldn't tell if it was from the fever, or the pain he was feeling. Either way, Hiro looked like an abused puppy.

Tadashi slowly ran his hand through his brothers hair, waiting, as Hiro adjusted back to the dark. After about a minute, his voice barely above a whisper, Hiro broke the silence.

"..Why is everyone here?"

The group looked at each other, including Tadashi, who was dumbfounded as to why that would be the first question his brother would ask. Wasabi was the first to speak.

" Fred and I found you here looking like hell dude, so I texted Tadashi and he came. Honey and Gogo just got in."

" Are you feeling sick, Hiro?" Honey asked, obviously not knowing about any of this.

"…like I got hit by a truck…" He absentmindedly said. "…Wait…Tadashi, you left class?" Hiro sat up and looked from Tadashi to Wasabi, raising his voice. " Why did you text him? I was fine with waiting for him to get out!" Wasabi was a little taken aback, but before he could respond to defend himself, Tadashi interjected.

" It was only 15 minutes before class ended, but that's beside the point! Hiro, why didn't you call or text me about this?" Tadashi had a hurt look on his face. The group looked at each other as they could feel the air changing around them. Wasabi stepped forward, feeling awkward to interrupt, as Hiro avoided Tadashi's stare. " We'll be outside if you need us, okay dude?"

" Ahh…sure.." Tadashi muttered, trying to pry a slightly angered glare from his brother. " Sorry guys, thank you though for your help, I appreciate it. I'll just be a minute." Tadashi looked apologetic at his friends, then gave a different look towards Wasabi, apologizing for Hiro's behavior. Wasabi shot him a look that said _It's cool, don't worry about it_. Hiro crossed his arms and stared at the floor. The friends all looked at each other and nodded to Tadashi, heading out the door.

" No problem man" Wasabi turned and left with the rest of group.

Tadashi let out his breath, and turned back to Hiro, who was refusing to look at him.

" Hiro, please, look at me." Tadashi sounded defeated. Hiro slowly lifted his eyes to look at his brother, wishing he hadn't snapped like at.

Tadashi took in a deep breath. " Why didn't you call me if you were feeling like this? You know it's no trouble for me to come get you"

Hiro shifted uncomfortably. " …I…I just didn't want you to miss class…I know how important it is to you.."

Tadashi looked at his brother in shock. " Hiro, you're more important to me then SFIT, you know that. If you're not well or if something is bothering you, then I want to help you out. I know you weren't just afraid I would miss class, now what's really going on with you? Is this about the nightmares your having?"

Hiro dropped his gaze, unable to take anymore. He didn't want to tell his brother he didn't want to worry him, that he didn't feel like he needed to stop life for his sake. He didn't want to be a burden on him. And he honestly still was unsure what his nightmares were about. He couldn't remember what happened when he woke up. Tadashi took hold of Hiro's chin gently, and made him look at him, but Hiro didn't say anything. He felt bad enough that he had to rely on Tadashi to take him home and make him miss part of his day. Tadashi sighed and gave up the fight for now.

" Alright, we'll talk about this later" Tadashi stood up and grabbed the nearby chair, bringing it over so he could sit in front of Hiro, who had just repositioned himself on the couch. " Right now, I want you to tell me everything that's wrong, okay?"

Hiro figured there was no point in hiding it anymore. He took a shaky breath and tried to clear his throat. Tadashi waited patiently for Hiro to gather his thoughts, or just build up the courage. He was thankful that Wasabi and everyone had offered to wait outside, If they were present, he was sure Hiro would refuse to say much.

Hiro hummed quietly, and spoke softly. " Um…my head really hurts. Like, I think it's a migraine. And my stomach is sore and I feel really nauseous. I threw up in the bathroom before I came here." Tadashi was concerned at his last comment, and wished he hadn't forced Hiro to eat more this morning. If he would have know, he would of suggested an alternative…and kept him home.

Tadashi spoke quickly " Do you need to throw up now?"

" No. No I don't think so.." Hiro shook his head and sat there thinking. Tadashi broke the sudden silence and asked " Alright, what else?"

Hiro thought for a moment. " My body hurts all over, and gets shaky….and my throat is sore. I think that's It for the most part.."

Tadashi placed his hand on Hiro's forehead and sighed. " And you've got a fever."

Hiro nodded, closing his eyes. Tadashi muttered a quiet "..Okay." and rubbed up and down Hiro's arm. He looked at him reassuringly, but Hiro couldn't return the warm gesture, He felt awful, both emotionally and physically.

"..I just want to go home.." Hiro whispered. Tadashi gently pulled Hiro into a hug and rubbed his back soothingly. Hiro hated to be sick, but Tadashi hated to see him so miserable even more. The poor kid rarely got ill, but when he did, it hit him hard. Hiro always puts up a brave front, even when he's sick, but once his shell is broken, his true age shows. He's just a kid after all in an adult world.

Hiro felt a little awkward with the embrace, and instinctively thought to pull back, but decided against it. As much as he didn't like to be fussed over, being with Tadashi alone was a little different. He could let down his walls a little easier and just accept what was around him. Hiro has always had a tough time expressing his emotions, and as much as Tadashi knew that, he was the opposite. His older brother was a very communicative and sympathetic person, and always wanted to be there for others. Tadashi truly cared about him, and he could feel that with every fiber of his being. Leaning into the touch, Hiro grabbed the front of Tadashi's shirt,and relaxed, thankful that he was here.

After a few minutes, Tadashi pulled Hiro away and looked at him gently. " We'll leave in a few minutes okay? I just need to get you something that will help your migraine before we leave. It's a bit brighter and loud out there, unless you want me to carry you out" Hiro immediately flashed him a look that read _Don't you_ _ **dare**_ _.._ Tadashi chuckled quietly, and assured him he would never do that to him.

Tadashi stood up, while Hiro slowly placed his feet over the edge of the couch, and rested his head in his hands. Tadashi watched him with sympathy, and walked over to his desk. Reaching over to the top drawer, he pulled out a pill bottle of headache medicine, and took out 2 pills. Grabbing a bottle of water left on his desk, he placed the meds in Hiro's hand and unscrewed the cap for him.

Successfully getting down the medicine, Tadashi spoke. " It won't help completely, but it should allow you to move and tolerate the lights and sounds, We'll get you something stronger when we get home. I'm gonna go outside for a minute to talk with Wasabi, then I'll be back okay? Let me know if you need anything. I'll be right outside" Hiro slowly nodded and on that note, he left the room.

The group had been waiting outside the door, talking amongst themselves. At the appearance of the older Hamada, the friends stopped their conversations and went over to meet him.

" How is he doing?" Honey was the first to speak for everyone.

" He's doing okay for now, but I'm going to take him home. Thank you guys, I'm sorry about all this.."

Fred now spoke for everyone. " Dude, its totally okay. We're just glad he's alright! I thought he was gonna keel over for sure."

Tadashi smiled at Fred, tho he didn't care for that last comment. The group said their goodbyes and wished Hiro would feel better soon. Tadashi waved back to them then looked at Wasabi.  
" And thanks for texting me. I know Hiro appreciated it too"

" It's no trouble dude, really. Just get him home so he can get better and come back to work with us okay?" Wasabi rested his hand on Tadashi's shoulder reassuringly. Grateful for his friends, Tadashi turned to go back inside, but remembered one last thing.

"Ohh! Heres that formulas sheet Wasabi" slipping out the paper from his bag, he handed it to his friend. Wasabi took it, and added one more thing before departing " And don't worry dude, I'll take notes for you for our last class." Tadashi breathed out a thank you, and Wasabi left. With that, Tadashi turned and went to go collect his little brother.

\- - -

" Alright little brother, you ready?"

"..yeah…go ahead.." Hiro sat and waiting in silence as Tadashi went over to turn on the lights. Hiro's head felt little better as they waiting for the meds to kick in. Once he thought he could handle the world around him, Tadashi wanted to get him use to the bright world in the safety of the lab first.

Tadashi kept his eyes on Hiro as he slowly flipped the switch. Hiro had closed his eyes in preparation, and let the throbbing in his head ease away before slowly opening them. He whined a little when the lights burned into his retinas, and his older brother went back to sit with him. After a minute or so, Hiro was able to adjust to the lighting and both brothers slowly stood up to take their leave.

Tadashi picked up Hiro's bag for him and turned to gently put his hand on Hiro's shoulder and the pair began to leave the lab.

Hiro shifted quickly, halting. " W..wait! I haven't gotten any of my stuff yet..and I need to hand in the paper I wrote…though I don't know where I put the flash drive.." Hiro began to get lost his his thought when Tadashi patted to his pocket.

" You left it on the seat of the truck. I was gonna return it to you later today, but don't worry about it yet, lets just get you home, okay?" Tadashi put his hand on Hiro's back and gently guided him out into the main area. There weren't too many people around luckily, so the noise level wasn't too bad. Classes where still going after all, It was only a little after 1:00.

Making their way to the doors, their friends all looked up from their own work areas and saw the brothers. Slowly making their way over, Tadashi smiled to quickly give a proper goodbye. Honey whispered some quick words to Hiro about how when he's feeling better, she has a really cool chemical reaction to show him. He smiled at this, and nodded slowly. Fred jumped up in front of him and patted his shoulder.

" Take care dude! It's so good to see you up! When you get back, you've GOT to see Wasabi's laser! He totally got it working!"

Hiro smiled at Fred as well, and said he would in a quiet voice. As much as he appreciated his friends being there, he really just wanted to leave now. Tadashi picked up the vibe and chimed in.

" Well, I'm going to take him home now, Thanks again Wasabi."

" It's no problem dude, drive safe. And take care Hiro, drink plenty of fluids." Wasabi winked at the younger Hamada, and Hiro let out a weak smile. As they began to leave, Hiro looked up at Tadashi and muttered a quick " Wait a sec" Turning back towards Wasabi, he called his name, making the man turn around.

" Hey…umm..I'm sorry for…you know, snapping at you. I appreciate you texting Tadashi for me…" Hiro was at this moment, grateful for his fever to hide his blush. He avoided eye contact, and looked at his feet.

Wasabi, understanding how difficult it was for him, put in hand on his shoulder and bent down to his level. " Don't worry about it, it's no problem at all." Not wanting to make Hiro feel anymore awkward, Wasabi stood up and gave two rather hard pats to his shoulder. " Feel better little man!" Wasabi turned and walked away, calling from behind his back " When you come back, I'll show you my laser induced plasma, okay?" Hiro's face brightened a little, and Tadashi put his hand on his shoulder again, and guided the boy out of the lab building.

\- - -

Once they finally made their way to the car, Hiro was exhausted. His power nap was okay, but exerting all that energy, energy he didn't have, made him want to collapse. If Tadashi had offered to carry him at this point, he probably would have let him. His body was drained. Tadashi saw how flat out tired Hiro was, and wanted to get him home asap. They had spent to much time getting from point A to point B. Opening the door, Hiro slowly climbed in and immediately curled up in his seat. He was starting to feel very nervous for the drive home, afraid that his stomach would flip over.

Tadashi opened the drivers side and slid both bags in first, thinking about too many things at once. Should he stop at the store to pick up things he knows his brother will need? What if he throws up in the car? What if he ends up mindlessly speeding and get pulled over, delaying them more? Should he call Aunt Cass first?…He shook his head to calm down and decided he was overreacting. Though, one of his thoughts did seen like a good idea..

Tadashi waited before getting in the truck, deep in thought. Hiro slowly looked over, glazed eyes fell on Tadashi, wondering why his brother had not gotten in yet. Tadashi noticed his look, and looked back at him apologetically.

" Sorry bro, but I'm going to give Aunt Cass a quick call first, then we'll leave, I promise."

Hiro's face fell, and he leaned his head against the back seat, taking deep breaths. This is what he didn't want. Aunt Cass finding out and worrying her. It was enough that Tadashi was going to miss a couple hours of school to take him home, and now his aunt? He didn't want everyone stopping their lives for him..

Tadashi saw the disappointed look in his eyes and sympathized with him. He knew that he didn't want her knowing, but he really didn't have a choice at this point. Closing the door, Tadashi dialed Cass's phone and leaned up against the back of the car.

\- - -

Aunt Cass was wiping down tables. The lunch rush had dispersed, leaving only 2 customers left at the Lucky Cat Cafe. Around this time up until 3:30 or so, the cafe was slow, with only the occasional customer in and out. She was thankful for this pattern though. It allowed her time to prepare for dinner that night, and catch up on a few things. Listening to the elderly regulars sitting in the corner, Cass held a large smile on her face.

At that moment, her phone started ringing. She picked it up to see who was calling, and became a little bit nervous to see it was Tadashi. Tadashi rarely ever called her unless he was going to tell her he was going to be late, but even then, he would usually just text. She bit her lip, and answered the call.

" Hey baby! How are things going?"

 _" Hey Aunt Cass. Things are fine, but I wanted to let you know that I'm coming home early with Hiro."_

Cass's face fell at this, her stomach beginning to knot.

" D..Did something happened? Are you boys okay?"

" _I'm fine Aunt Cass, but Hiro's sick. Wasabi found him in my lab sleeping, and texted me so I went over to see for myself. Hes got a fever that feels pretty high and a migraine, and hes thrown up, so I'm bringing him home to rest."_

Cass immediately became concerned. She knew Hiro hadn't really eaten breakfast or dinner the past few days. And hes been acting a little off. If she had been paying more attention, maybe she would have realized it sooner and kept him home this morning. She was pretty good at knowing things about the boys, even when they tried to hide it. That was her job as their caretaker tho, and she did what she could to learned everything about her boys the very first day she took custody of them. Everything from their behavior during certain times to their favorite things. She needed to know them inside and out, and not knowing the Hiro was simply sick, felt like a failure. She was just so busy and with the boys growing before her eyes, it was so hard to keep up sometimes.

Drawing in a shaky breath, Cass pushed the worrisome thoughts away, and kicked in caretaker mode. She needed to be the one in control. Tadashi was doing a great job, but she had to take over when she was able too, just like when Hiro use to have night terrors, and Cass would take him downstairs so Tadashi could get some sleep and not have to worry anymore.

" Okay sweetie, thank you. I'll go get things set up for him here and make a broth. Drive carefully okay? Let me know if anything happens. The cafe is dead so there shouldn't be any problems. I'll see you when you get here."

 _"Thanks, I will, and I'll see you soon."_

Cass hung up the phone and took deep breath. It was just the flu it sounded like, nothing she hasn't delt with before. This one sounded particularly nasty, but she pushed all worries down the drain. All she could thing about was how Hiro was going to hate staying in bed for a few days. She smiled slightly at this and turned to go put her phone down.

" Everything okay with your bright young boys?" The old lady in the corner asked. Cass smiled, and turned to respond.

"Yeah, Mrs. Matsuda, everything fine. Hiro's not well so Tadashi's bringing him home. Looks like we're gonna have him cooped up here for a few days." Cass put her hands on her hips and smirked, thinking about Hiro's face the last time he was told he wasn't allowed to leave his bed.

The ladies chuckled to themselves, one speaking " Ahh thats too bad. Tadashi's such a good, caring older brother to take care of him. You've raised some fine boys Cass."

" A little warm tea with ginger and something spicy will cure that boy right up!" Mrs. Matsuda chimed in. " Hes a little firecracker anyways, gonna be hard to tie him down!" All three ladies laughed, as they could still see little Hiro chasing Tadashi around the cafe, bumping into things and even tripping down the stairs. When Cass ran over to pick him up, he quickly brushed her off and resumed chasing what later she discovered, was their cat Mochi.

" I'm not sure how anything spicy will do for his stomach, but that's a good suggestion." Cass smiled and turned to go upstairs and begin digging out things she would need to take care of her nephew.

\- - -

 _" Okay sweetie, thank you. I'll go get things set up for him here and make a broth. Drive carefully okay? Let me know if anything happens. The cafe is dead so there shouldn't be any problems. I'll see you when you get here."_

"Thanks, I will, and I'll see you soon."

Aunt Cass hung up the phone and Tadashi drew in a deep breath. He hated worrying Aunt Cass, but she seemed to recover pretty quickly. She's pretty good when her maternal instants kick in. She sounded pretty calm on the phone, and that eased tadashi alittle. Feeling relieved that was done, He went back to the drivers side and got into the truck. Hiro was already asleep against the window. As calm as he felt, he was still concerned. Hiro still looked really bad. Putting in the keys, Tadashi started the truck without waking up brother, and headed home.

\- - -

Hiro laid moaning in his seat. As soon as they pulled on to the main roads, Hiro woke up with stir. The hills of SanFransokyo where brutal, and after going down their first one, Hiro felt extremely nauseous. Tadashi looked over at him, afraid of the color his brother was turning.  
" Hiro, are you going to be sick? If so I can pull over…" Hiro just drew in a shaky breath and laid his head back, pressing his palms into in eyes. " We'll be home shorty buddy, just take deep, slow breaths. Try putting your head down."

Hiro immediately brought his head down between his knees, and moaned. Tadashi reached over and rubbed a hand soothingly on his back, doing anything he could to comfort the boy. His back was drenched in sweat, and his hair stuck to his forehead. Tadashi wished he could play double the speed limit just to get him home quicker.

Hiro stayed like the for a few minutes until they were just outside the main part of the city. The ground was very bumpy. Tadashi did his best to go over them as slow as possible, biting his lip the whole time. It only took one bump too fast to set Hiro off.

"…Tadashi, pull over.."


	6. Chapter 6

Without hesitation, Tadashi pulled off the side of the road. Hiro had the door open before the truck came to a stop, and ran out instantly. He crumbled on the ground, and emptied his stomach. Tadashi got out of the car and ran to his brothers side. Crouching down, he rubbed Hiro's back as he began to dry heave. The kid had nothing in his system, but that didn't stop his stomach from trying to squeeze out every bit.

Tadashi quietly shushed him. _Thank god we haven't entered the city yet. At least he's not throwing up on the streets._

" Try to relax Hiro, take deep breaths."

Hiro tried to settle down his system, but it wasn't working. He was getting too worked up internally. From the guilt he felt from the day, the fact that Aunt Cass knew and was probably worried at home, to his fear for getting back into the truck, he couldn't take it. He had too much making him nervous and anxious. Hiro covered his mouth and squeezed his eyes shut, trying his best to hold it in. stop, stop stop…

Tadashi watched as Hiro seemed to be panicking more, and he became very concerned at this. At this rate, Hiro was going to raise his fever and possibly end up having some sort of panic attack at not being able to stop. The boy continued to dry heave.

" Hiro, listen to me." Tadashi put his hand on the back of Hiro's neck, and the other on his upper arm. " You need to calm down okay? Take deep breaths. It will calm down if you do."

Hiro squirmed alittle and placed both hands on the ground as another dry heavy ripped through his body. His voice was barley over a whisper.

" I….I..Can't… I-"

At that moment Tadashi grabbed Hiro's shoulders and turned him towards him. He then gently grabbed the back of his head, and pressed the side into his chest. With this positioning, Hiro was able to hear his brother's heartbeat. Tadashi continued to rub Hiro's back, keeping the other hand firmly on his head. He needed to calm down, he didn't care if he threw up on him at this point.

Hiro was shocked at the sudden movement as Tadashi whipped him around into this awkward hug. As soon as his head was on his chest, Hiro could hear the thumping of his brothers heart. While it was pretty fast, it slowed down quickly into a gentle rhythm. Listening to his brothers life was soothing, and the whole world seemed to black out at that moment. Hiro could also hear his brother take deep, slow breaths, another calming sound. Matching his breathing to Tadashi's, Hiro was slowly beginning to relax. The dry heaving had stopped and his stomach was feeling a little better.

Tadashi sat there on the ground with Hiro for a good few minutes. He could feel Hiro's body relax, and took a deep breath of relief. It was hard for him to keep calm in this type of situation, but he had no other option. This was a method taught to him by his mother before she passed. Like Hiro, Tadashi too, struggled with sleep and would often have nightmares. He panicked a lot too, and his mother would always do this exercise with him to calm him down. She wasn't a huge fan of using medicines, as she was with natural remedies. Massages and acupressure were popular with her, as well as nature and focusing on your own body.

The boys sat in silence for another few minutes, till Tadashi quietly spoke.

" Are you doing okay?"

Hiro slowly sat up and took a deep breath. Almost asleep, he forgot where they were. Hiro slowly nodded and Tadashi stood up, helping him up as well. He felt better. Tadashi waited for Hiro to give any sign that he was either ready to go back in the truck and go home, or that he was going to throw up again, but he just stood there looking half asleep. Taking control again, Tadashi touched Hiro's shoulder and gestured to the car.

" Are you ready to get back in?.." Tadashi asked, hesitantly. Hiro nodded, and made his way to the car, not saying anything. Tadashi opened his door and he climbed inside. Once settled, Tadashi did the same, waiting until Hiro was buckled in, and resumed their drive home.

Tadashi looked over at Hiro occasionally, checking for any of the signs that he was going to be sick again, but he seemed to be okay. The only thing Tadashi felt was odd, was that Hiro kept glancing his way, then down at his lap, like he wanted to say something. Tadashi knew not to point it out, or downright ask him, so he waited. After 3 minutes of this shifting around, Hiro spoke up.

" … Thank you.. For, you know…" Tadashi smiled, not needing to have Hiro finished his sentence. He reached over and messed up his hair, giving him a little smirk. The conversation ended like that, and that was more then enough between the two. They sat in silence the rest of the way.

\- - -

By the time the boys reached the Lucky Cat Cafe, Hiro's headache was slowly returning. He still felt nauseous, and was sweating badly. His cheeks burned with fever and his muscles screamed, particularly his stomach muscles. Tadashi parked the car, and pulled the bags out. Hiro got out slowly, holding his head and walked a snails pace. Tadashi slowed down and went to steady his little brother. Hiro was slightly annoyed with the constant fussing over him, but he was thankful at the same time.

The cafe was still empty, with only the 2 ladies still in the corner. It was only 1:20, so it would be quiet for another couple hours. Tadashi opened the front door as both stepped inside. Since they were present for the phone call Cass had received, both ladies kept quiet in the back instead of giving the boys their usual "Welcome back" conversation. At the sound of the bell, Aunt Cass made her way around the corner, relieved to see her boys come through the door. She quickly but quietly made her way over, and whispered a very quiet " Welcome back" to her looked at her in amazement. She was aware of his migraine, and made sure to keep quiet. He also noticed there were fewer lights on in the main room, and used the natural lighting instead, even closing a few blinds on the unoccupied windows. Tadashi, at that point, was grateful he had called her. She was prepared.

Aunt Cass made her way to Hiro, and bent down to look at him. She wasn't really prepared for what she saw. He looked like a train wreck, completely opposite of the boy she saw this morning. Tadashi had said he was sick, but she didn't know it was quite like this. Hiro understood that she would like to know how he was feeling, but he was hoping she would at least wait till he was upstairs.

As if reading his mind, without asking him anything at all, she bent down to his level, and placed her hand on his forehead, and another on the back of his neck. She frowned as she slid her hand down to his cheek, taking a mental note. She then stood up and gently guided her sick nephew towards the stairs. " Lets get you into bed okay?" She said quietly and walked him up. Looking back to Tadashi, he followed with their bags, waving a quick hello to the watching ladies in the back.

Once upstairs, Hiro looked at his bed with such relief. The most beautiful site hes seen all day. Tadashi walked in and was impressed. Aunt Cass had laid out a new T-shirt and pajama pants for Hiro, as well as turned his bed down. There was a mixed of medicines from headache relief to fever reducer, as well as a thermometer and a cooling pack. Extra blankets were stacked in the corner, and a bucket was on the floor next to the bed, just in case. God, she was so prepared. Tadashi couldn't help but smile a little. He was afraid he was going to have to drop Hiro off and make a run to the store.

After changing into something more comfortable, Hiro immediately climbed into bed. Aunt Cass sat on the edge, and grabbed the thermometer. Turing it on, She instructed Hiro to place it under his tongue. Groaning slightly at the contraption, he did as he was asked. He just wanted to sleep. Tadashi reached over and grabbed at the cold pack, opening the package. A minute later, the thermometer beeped, and Aunt Cass gently pulled it out of his mouth, and read it. Tadashi took that moment to put the cooling pack on Hiro's head, pressing it firmly to make sure the adhesive would stick. 101.2…Not what she wanted to see. She looked back at Hiro, and smiled softly, who was already beginning to drift off. She brushed the hair off of his sweaty face, getting his attention.

" Can you tell me exactly what your feeling, honey?"

Hiro took a deep breath, and began to quietly explain his symptoms. Tadashi stood by the bed waiting, adding in a couple things when Hiro forgot to mention it.

"Well pal, I'm not sure what you caught, but its a nasty one isn't it?" Aunt Cass shifted on the bed, and stood up. "Just try to get some rest, alright sweetie? I'll bring you up some soup later. Take this before you get to sleep though." She reached over the the bedside table, and pulled out a couple pills of fever reducer, and migraine relief and a bottle of water. Taking the pills, Hiro muttered a quiet "Thank you". Cass nodded to her nephew, rubbing her hands threw his hair, and turned to leave, motioning to Tadashi to follow her. The older brother began to follow his aunt downstairs, when he heard Hiro call his name. He made his way back over to the bed.

"Yeah little brother?" Tadashi quietly asked.

Hiro took as second before saying anything, then spoke up. "….are you leaving?"

Tadashi was kinda shocked at the question. He would thought Hiro would have wanted to be alone, not that Tadashi would want him to be. He thought for a second before answering.

" Well, I'm going to go downstairs to talk with Aunt Cass really quickly, but I'll come back up. Though, since you will probably be asleep, I will probably make a run back to the school to get your work for the next few days, and some things for me to work on…but then i'll be here."

Hiro looked a little worried. " Wait…you're not going to go back to school? to class?." Tadashi didn't see what was so hard to get about it. Of course he wasn't going to drop Hiro off and run out like that. He sat on the edge of the bed and spoke firmly.

" Of course I'm not going to stay at school. Wasabi offered to take notes for me, and the rest is just lab time. It's a little easier for me to miss time then you, bonehead. I'm going to stay here and take care of you"

Hiro didn't like his answer. He didn't want this, Tadashi missing school for his sake. All the time he could be working on his projects, he would be stuck here tending to his little brothers needs. Hiro sat up a little, and looked Tadashi straight in the eye.

" You can't! You need to be in school, I don't want you to miss important things because of me! what if you end up falling behind or-"

"Whoa, hey slow down" Tadashi interrupted. He looked at Hiro concerned. He didn't know if this was the fever talking, or something thats been on Hiro's mind for awhile, either way, he didn't want to talk about this now. Hiro needed rest.

" Hiro, look, no matter what you say, I'm coming back. I'm not going to go to school all day leaving you home alone. Aunt Cass is here, but she's got the cafe to run too. Besides, I want too. So I'm going to go pick up your work, and hand in that paper for you. I'll be right back okay? Just….don't worry. I'm not missing anything important. I can just work on my things here, it's no big deal."

Hiro wasn't totally satisfied with that answer, but he didn't want to argue anymore. Tadashi seemed pretty adamant that he wasn't going to change his mind, and confident it wasn't a big deal. Maybe Hiro was overreacting alittle…

Taking a deep sigh, Hiro looked disappointed. Tadashi smiled and brought the covered up to his chin. Hiro spoke softly "…You're sure?"

" Yes, knucklehead, for the last time, whether you like it or not, I'm gonna help you kick this. Now stop worrying about it and get some rest. I'll be right here when you wake up."

Hiro felt a little relief wash over him, and almost instantly, he drifted off. Tadashi, as confident as he made himself look, was left confused and concerned over Hiro's freakout. Why did it matter to him so much that he miss a day or two? Shaking the question out of his head, he remembered Aunt Cass downstairs, and turned to go down to meet with her.

\- - -

Aunt Cass was pouring coffee into mugs as Tadashi walked downstairs. She set his mug down on the table, and motioned for him to sit.

" I just checked the cafe, things are running fine. Still no customers!" Cass chuckled to herself, while her oldest nephew seemed to carry a relieved emotion on his face.

Taking a quick sip of her coffee, Aunt Cass spoke quietly. " Well, Hiro's going to be in bed for at least a few days I'm sure. He's not going to be happy about that" Cass smiled sympathetically, and Tadashi was right there with her.

Tadashi rubbed the back of his neck and took another sip " You're telling me…thank you though for getting everything ready. I thought I would need to make an emergency trip out as soon as we got home"

" It's my job sweetie, I'll do what I can. I think I'm going to close the cafe tomorrow, or at least open for the rush hours?…or maybe just the evening?…." Cass hummed in thought, more talking to herself then Tadashi. " … I hate to ask this of you honey, I know you're busy with school, but do you think maybe you could come home right after school for the next few days? That way maybe I can at least open for the evening rush…"  
Tadashi finished gulping down the last of his coffee that he didn't realized he needed so much, and raised a hand to his aunt as he finished swallowing, Signaling he was going to say something

" I can do better" Tadashi set his mug down and wiped his mouth with his hand. " I'll just stay home with him."

Cass became wide eyed and put her mug down. " You can't do that honey, you'll fall so far behind! I don't want you to miss any of your-

"Aunt Cass" Tadashi interrupted " Trust me, I already worked it out. Most of my day is spent in the lab anyways, except a couple days a week. Wasabi's taking my notes, and tomorrow I planned on being in the lab all day. I was going to head to the school in a few minutes to pick up Hiro's work and parts of the project I'm working on so I can work from home. I'll stop in on my other professors to double check with them too. Don't worry about it."

Cass seemed to be lost in thought, not liking the idea that Tadashi was going to be missing school. Missing tomorrow was one thing, but what happens if this lasts a few days? Thinking, Cass figured that they could cross that bridge if they reached it.

" A few days missed will be fine, trust me. And tomorrows thursday, so that gives us the weekend too." Tadashi sat and waited for his aunt to agree it was the best option. She couldn't close the cafe or run on a weird schedule for long. " Besides, Aunt Cass, it's really our only option. You can't close the cafe for that long. If for whatever reason I need to be gone, closing early or for one day will be fine, but let me take care of this, you have enough on your plate."

Wrapping her hands around her mug, Cass reluctantly agreed. " I suppose you're right…are you sure Tadashi? If you feel like your behind or that you need to go for a couple hours, you will tell me right?"

Tadashi placed his hand over hers. "Promise." Aunt Cass smiled, and got up to give her nephew a hug. She always loved hugging Tadashi best, cause he returned the hug ten fold. Hiro, on the other hand, did his best to squirm away after a few seconds. He was young, so it was expected. Cass held on to him for a few seconds longer, thinking about what an amazing man he turned out to be.

" Thank you honey, your such a good older brother. You're parents would be so proud of the way you take care of us"

Tadashi was surprised at the sudden compliment. It meant the world to him. He looked at his aunt, at a complete loss for words. " … Thank you Aunt Cass."

She rested her hand on his cheek, then turned to pick up the mugs to bring them to the sink.  
" Alright! I'm going to check the cafe and begin making a simple soup for our boy. In the meantime, you run to the school!"

Tadashi snapped into action. " Right." He followed his aunt downstairs to the cafe, slipping on his shoes. The cafe was still dead. The ladies had departed, leaving the place totally empty. Tables were already clean from before, so Cass had the time to get other things going. Before heading out the door, he turned to his aunt one last time.

" Call me if you need anything, I should be back in an hour"

Giving her nephew wave farewell, she went into the kitchen to begin making soup.

 _Hiro held on to the arm close. He hoped to never let go. Whoever it belonged too, it was important that they never separate._

 _Flames began to travel up from below, crawling up the sleeve. It singed the fabric that Hiro clung too, making him cry out._

 _" No! Don't burn it! I don't want to let go!"_

 _-someone ha-s to -elp-_

 _" Please! I can't hear you!" Hiro pulled on the fabric, willing the owner of the arm to turn around and say something clearly to him, though he couldn't see any details of a person there on the other side of the smoke wall. All he could see was the arm, and the slowly burning fabric that covered the skin._

* * *

Hiro tossed and turned in his bed, sweat drenching his forehead and shirt. It had been about 20 minutes after Tadashi left, and Hiro had felt like he had been dreaming for hours, stuck in this nightmare. He let out a quiet cry as his dream intensified.

* * *

 _"Stop! Stop burning!" Hiro pulled on the arm with all his weight. He didn't really know what he was doing, but to him, it made sense. Wrapping himself around the limb, he dug his fingers in the singed fabric. It continued to slowly burn through, searing into his fingertips._

 _-meone has to help-_

 _Hiro's eyes snapped up as the voice was becoming clearer to him. " Has to help? What has to help?"_

 _The flames licked at his fingers and they began to sting. With shock, his grasp weakened on the arm, and began to pull away. Hiro lunched forward and grabbed at the fabric again, cursing himself for succumbing to weakness._

 _"… someone has to help."_

 _Hiro could hear the voice clearly now, and rose to his feet. The smoke choked him and burned his eyes, but he didn't feel a thing. He could hear it._

 _"..who? Who has to help?!" Hiro kept a hold on the arm, not even feeling the burning on his own skin._

 _The world seems to get quiet all of a sudden, and the flames went out, leaving Hiro's fingers burnt. The arm he was holding on to relaxed, and slowly the smoke pulled aware from the body. The foggy smoke that was around the figure was slowing lifting away, allowing Hiro to start seeing shapes. He squinted his eyes and tried to reach out, but found he couldn't move. The figure stood there in the quiet world._

 _" Someone has to help"_

 _Hiro didn't say anything as the person slowly came into view._

* * *

Aunt Cass had just finished making the soup for Hiro, and checked the time. Tadashi had been gone for 45 min, he should be back anytime. Good thing too, the rush was due to come in soon. Checking to make sure everything was down in the cafe, she put out a sign saying she would be back in five, in case someone were to come in, and went upstairs to their home. She poured herself another cup of coffee and prepared herself for the final evening rush. She felt like it would be a busy one.

Downing that coffee quicker then usual, she figured she should go check on Hiro. She made her way upstairs, petting Mochi who was curled on the couch as she passed.

Once upstairs, she could hear Hiro tossing and turning instantly. He hasn't been sleeping for very long, it was weird for him to already be sucked into a dream..

Walking over to the bed, she felt worry absorb her. Hiro had managed to tangle himself in the sheets, and was panting hard. Sweat rolled down his face and his mouth parted in a silent cry. Alarmed, Cass sat on the edge and tried to wake him up. He shouldn't be having a nightmare when he was this sick, that wasn't good. Putting a hand on the side of his face and grabbing his shoulder, she called his name.


	7. Chapter 7

* * *

 _-Hiro-_

 _A quiet sound was beginning to distract him, drawing his attention from the figure in front if him. It was becoming more clear with every second._

 _-Hiro-_

 _Hiro pushed back the distraction, and stared in front of him. The figure was taller then he was, and his head rounded out and broad shoulders shone through. Hiro's grasp weakened and his hands became numb. He stood in shock as a familiarity rushed over him. no….It couldn't be…_  
 _The smoke almost completely cleared out, revealing the forms back in front of him. Hiro stood shocked, as the figure began to slowly turn around. What felt like hours was actually seconds, as Hiro's fears were confirmed. Tadashi slowly turned around to look at Hiro, though he didn't look like he was seeing him, just looking. His arm that Hiro held onto was severely burnt, while the rest of him remained untouched. Hiro looked at the arm in shock, and looked at himself. His fingers were burnt where he clasped the arm so hard, but the rest of him was fine._

 _I…I did this? if Hiro hadn't held on to Tadashi's arm, he wouldn't have gotten him burned. dropping the arm in shock, Hiro looked up at his brothers face, who was looking at him._

 _-Hiro!-_

 _" Someone had to help"_

 _Tadashi turned and ran into a wall of flame, disappearing from Hiro's sight. He was alone. he didn't want to be alone! He called after his brother, but he didn't come back. Finding the strength to move, Hiro lunched forward at the wall, but his whole world began to black out. Calling his name one last time, but getting no response, Hiro collapsed on the ground._

 _His brother was gone, and he was alone._

 _-HIRO-_

* * *

Cass gently shook her nephew, hoping for him to wake up. Afraid this was going to be like his night terrors, she began to worry. She could feel his temperature rising, and was afraid of what she would have to do if she couldn't get him to wake up. While calling his name, she thought to herself that it was a good thing Tadashi would be home. She wouldn't be able to properly care for Hiro while running her cafe, and she couldn't afford to no have it open. She left him alone for 45 minutes and he was already sucked into a nightmare. She would constantly be distracted with worry if it were just the two of them all day.

She called Hiro's name one last time, before his eyes flew open and he let out a quick yelp, scaring the Aunt. Cass jumped slightly, not expecting that response, and let the worry wash over her as she backed off from Hiro for a second as he absorbed his surroundings, figuring out what was going on. Once he sat up, Cass made her way over to him again, putting her hands on his face, kissing his head.

'Ohh sweetie, I'm sorry I startled you….you were having a bad dream! Are you okay, honey?" She frantically put her hand through his hair, eyes searching his, but he wasn't giving any response, and that scared her. He seemed to still be a little out of it, and he eyed the room in a panic. Cass gently turned Hiro's head, prying his eyes away from what he was trying to look at, and had him focus on her.

" Hiro, baby I'm right here. Please look at me, okay?" Hiro seemed to relax alittle, and looked back at his aunt. At the same time, his voice came out in a panicked whisper.

" …W…Wheres Tadashi? Where is he?!"

Cass was startled at his sudden question, and shushed him quietly. " Calm down Hiro, Tadashi's fine. He'll be back any minute. He ran to the school to get your things, remember?"

"… He's not here? H..He said he would be here when I woke up, where is he?…When will he be back?! Where's Tadashi?!" Hiro raised his voice in alarm, and Cass couldn't take the panic in his voice. It hurt her to see Hiro like this, even if it was all fever induced, the fear in his voice was real. Cass gently pulled Hiro into a hug and rubbed his back, sticky with sweat. " Tadashi's fine, honey. He'll be up here in a few minutes okay? Just relax" Hiro struggled in her arms, but she firmly held him. He eventually calmed down, continuing to ask for his older brother. Cass changed the ice pack on his head, and re-took his temperature. This little ordeal had caused his fever to raise up to 102.6 degrees. She pulled off Hiro's shirt, surprised that there was no struggle, and tossed it aside. Hiro laid down and she left to the bathroom to get a cloth, running it under cold water. She returned and placed it on Hiro's neck. Hiro was laying on his side now, half asleep, still asking for his brother. Cass watched in sympathy as her nephew struggled internally. He kept whispering that his hands were burnt and he was hot. That he had burned Tadashi and saying someone had to help. She rubbed the cold cloth down his back and over his shoulders. Just when she thought her emotions couldn't take anymore, Hiro drifted off into sleep, breathing deeply and softy. He actually seemed comfortable despite the blankets being down at his waist and without a shirt.

Releasing the breath she was holding, she laid the cloth on the back on his neck, and leaned back in her chair. That was the most emotionally taxing thing she has had to go through in a long time. If this was what the next few days would be like, she wasn't sure she could do it. What's worse was the Tadashi had offered to watch him. What If he was here to see that? She didn't want him to go through that, to watch him struggle as you were forced to sit on the side, letting him work through it for the most part. Pushing all thoughts out of her head, she was relieved to hear the cafe door close, and footstep coming up the stairs from the cafe. After making sure Hiro was asleep, she rushed down the stairs to go meet with her oldest, happy he was finally home so Hiro wouldn't panic anymore.

\- - -

Tadashi ran inside and looked at the time. He was gone an hour and 10 minutes, needing to make a run to the store. Hoping that Hiro was still sleep, he quickly slipped off his shoes and made his way up the first set of stairs. As he approached the top floor, he saw Aunt Cass making her way down.

" Hey, sorry I'm late, I forgot Hiro had this paper he needed printed and then I just got caught up with trying to get all the work.." Tadashi walked to the kitchen to put a bag in the fridge. " Then I ran into the store really quick." Tadashi pulled out one of the items in the bag, a vitamin water and closed the door. Cass had her arms folded and made her way over to her nephew. Tadashi turned to look at her.

" So how did things go here? The evening rush should be coming in soon."

Cass nodded and smiled. " Yep, I'm ready for it. Things were fine here, but Hiro had a bad dream.."

Tadashi stopped what he was doing and looked over to her. " He did? that's the second time today.."

Cass nodded. " Yeah..it was pretty bad. I got him to wake up and calm down after a few minutes, but he was really, really frantic…" Tadashi broke away his stare at his aunt, and looked down, deep in thought. _What was he dreaming about? Is it the same nightmare?_ ….Tadashi lifted his head to look at Cass, who had a lingering look of worry. He cleared his throat. " Did..did he tell you what it was? Cause he told me he didn't remember when I asked him abou-"

" No, he didn't tell me what happened.." Cass bit her lip. " But after he woke up he was screaming for you, and when you weren't there, he panicked."

Tadashi looked at her in shock, and guilt washed over him. He should have been here, then he could have prevented his aunt from having to experience that. He rubbed his neck nervously, and spoke quietly. "…I'm sorry, I should have been here, then he wouldn't have-" Cass reached out and touched her nephews arm.

" No! No sweetie, I didn't mean it like that! It's not your fault, I just meant that I think it's about you, or you have something to do with it. When he wakes up, maybe you should have a talk with him if you can."

Tadashi took a deep breath and nodded. He definitely needed to talk about this. " okay.." He said in a quiet voice, and looked at the stairs. Feeling the weight of the bags on his shoulder and back, he grabbed the water and turned to leave.

"Tadashi?"

The older boy stopped and turned back to his aunt, who was thumbing the rim of a coffee cup.

" He was also muttering some strange words and things…I couldn't really hear him, but he did mention that his fingers were burning? And that you were burning and it was his fault…and something about helping someone. It sounded like it was the fever talking, it did elevate to 102. But I just wanted you to know."

Tadashi pushed the bag on his shoulder higher, and thought to himself. He had no clue what that meant. He smiled at his aunt, and walked over rest his hand on her shoulder.

" Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. Let me know If you need any help in the cafe."

Cass chucked " I'm fine, you let me know if you need any help, okay?" She brushed off Tadashi's jacket, and directed him towards the stairs. " Seriously, please call me if anything happens or if his fever gets any higher" She called after him. Tadashi nodded his head, and continued up the stairs.

The older boy rested his eyes on his brother as he made in way into their shared room. He quietly walked over to his side, and put the bags down. Taking out a couple of books and his computer, he set them down on the work desk, and went to go put Hiro's things down at his desk. Setting them down, he turned to check on his brother. Not too sure where his shirt went, but he looked more or less comfortable, more then he has been looking. The last cold compress he had on his forehead looked like it wasn't cool anymore, but he couldn't risk peeling it off and waking him up. Leaving it for now, Tadashi gently put the back of his fingers on Hiro's cheek. He was warm, very warm in fact, but Aunt Cass did say it got worse after his nightmare. Sighing deeply, he pulled his covers up a little higher and shook his head slightly. At least he was breathing deeply and quietly. Everything seemed to be alright, so Tadashi went back to his side of the room and began his school work.

Tadashi heard a moan, and looked up from his book. Was that Hiro?. Looking at his clock, it had been 32 minutes since he had gotten home. About to stand up to go check on his brother, he heard Hiro shift, and quietly called out for him.

"..Tadashi…Tadashi?" Hiro's breathing had quickened as Tadashi quickly got up and maneuvered to the other side of the room. Hiro's chest was rapidly rising and falling, and He looked around in panic as he called his brothers name again. Tadashi made his way over to the bed and quickly sat down.

" Hiro, I'm right here. I'm here" Tadashi reached out to set his hand on Hiro's arm, but he had him beat. Hiro reached out and clung to his older brother first , the sound of relief escaping his mouth. he grabbed the front of Tadashi's shirt, and panted hard. Tadashi quietly whispered shushing noises to him, reassuring him that he was there.

Tadashi was shocked at this reaction from his brother. He hadn't expected this at all. When Hiro was a kid and would have a nightmare or didn't feel well, he often sought his brother out for comfort like this. But as Hiro got older, he didn't like to be tended too or fussed over. He would accept it when given in moments like this, but never initiated it. Gently rubbed down Hiro's back, he waited for his brother to calm down.

" It's okay. I'm right here." He stopped rubbing his back and put his hands on his shoulders to gently pull him away. Hiro released a big sigh, and kept his head down. He muttered quietly.

" Last time, you weren't here…."

" I told you I had to go to the school. I'm sorry, I know I said I would be here when you woke up, but I didn't expect you to wake so soon. You knew I would be back though.."

"..Yeah, but what If you weren't?" Hiro looked up to find a shock look on Tadashi's face. He stared at Hiro, his jaw shut tightly. He didn't know how to respond to him. He wasn't concerned so much to the question, as he was to Hiro for asking it.

"…Hiro, you know you're my first priority. I'll always come back to you. Does this have something to do with your nightmares?" Hiro's eyes widened at this, and he immediately began to withdraw. Tadashi noticed this, and knowing exactly what he was doing, wanted to put a stop to it. Hiro had a bad habit of shutting down if he didn't want to admit or talk about something that bothered him. Tadashi knew what the signs were, and would corner Hiro if he had to to get it out of him.

He reached over to grab Hiro's arm and spoke to him in a warning tone. " No, Hiro your not going to avoid this. This is the second or third time today that this has happened, and that doesn't even include the events from last night. You need to tell me now whats been going on." Hiro crossed his arms and refused to say anything. The older brother said his name in a warning tone, but all he got back was a "Leave me alone Tadashi" Tadashi got up and pinched between his eyes. This wasn't going to work. He turned away from Hiro's bed and headed towards the stairs. This let loose a shocked reaction from Hiro, and he watched wide eyed as his brother walked away. " Alright Hiro, fine. I'll just go get Aunt Cass and she can help me by telling me what happened while I wasn't here-"

Hiro immediately pushed himself forward and let out out a panicked cry. " NO! Wait, please don't go! Stay! Don't leave!"

Tadashi was taken aback by his outburst. He needed to know why Hiro was behaving this way. It was like hot and cold, one minute he needed his brother, and the next he didn't want him at all. He held a look of frustration as he turned back to his brother. " What do you want me to do Hiro! You won't talk to me, and you won't let me leave. Just tell me what's bothering you!" Hiro's face fell and he looked scared, rubbing his hands nervously and avoiding eye contact. Tadashi sighed in frustration, and walked back to the bed, firmly planting himself down again.

He gazed firmly at Hiro who finally looked back at him nervously. Then his tone and face softened a bit " So I can try to help you, okay? Someone has to help, let me."

Hiro gasped at Tadashi's last statement, and his older brother noticed this. He gave him a look that said _spill it, now._ He had said that in his nightmare, and Hiro could feel he was on the verge of tears. Tadashi's face fell immediately at the reaction Hiro had given him, and instantly became more concerned, eyebrows drawn up. Without saying anything, Hiro put his head down and lounged forward at his brother, wrapping his arms around his waist.

Tadashi was shocked. He didn't know what brought this on, but he was happy to see it happen. He slowly wrapped his arms around him, and rested his head on his brothers. Hiro sniffed and breathed heavily, holding back tears of frustration, and relief. Tadashi just let him be as the younger Hamada gathered his thoughts and took hold of his emotions. He would be there once he was ready. Hiro took a deep shaky breath and began to quietly mutter.

"…umm..it's really confusing, but..all I remember is that you were standing in front of a big fire or something, and it was really, really hot. and I was holding on to your arm, but you were saying something I couldn't understand. I refused to let go, cause then you would be gone, but the fire was burning me…and I didn't know it was burning you too…" Tadashi looked down at his brother in horror. Now the things his aunt said made sense. He gently ran his hand through Hiro's hair and encouraged him to keep going. Hiro drew in a shaky breath, and continued.

" I couldn't see or breath cause of all the smoke, but finally it stopped and then I could see you. Where I was holding on to you was so badly burnt, and It was all my fault for not letting go…you said Someone has to help and pulled away, running into the fire. I called you back but you didn't come! I tried! I thought I was doing the right thing! I didn't mean to hurt you but I…I.."

Tadashi hugged his brother tighter as his voice began to crack. That's all he needed to hear. Now he understood. He muttered small shushing noises and gently rocked back and forth. What a terrible nightmare, and to have it happen so often.  
"….You didn't come back…why didn't you come back?" Hiro grasped on to Tadashi shirt so tightly that his knuckles were felt so sorry for him, and didn't know how to comfort him any more. Gathering his thoughts,he figured he would try.

"…Hiro, I want you to listen to me, okay?" Hiro nodded, but kept his head pressed into his brothers chest. Tadashi straightened up, and slide his hands to Hiro's shoulders, signaling he wanted him to do the same. Hiro slowly pulled away from his brother, but kept his head down. Tadashi gently lifted Hiro's chin, and once he was looking up at him, he brushed the hair and sweat out of his eyes.

" I promise, that I will _never_ leave you like that. _Ever_. Don't blame yourself for what happened, It was just a dream, okay? You need to understand that. I'm fine, you're fine, it was just a bad dream." Sighing softly, he continued. "If you ever need me for something, I will always be here for you, and I will always come to you If you call for me, you know that, right?" Hiro nodded slowly. Tadashi's face softened as he cupped the side of Hiro's face with his hand. " I'll never abandon you. Sorry bro, but your stuck with me for life." Hiro smiled and Tadashi let out a small chuckle. Hiro rubbed his face and Tadashi leaned back a bit. " And I promise" Tadashi held up his hand. " That I will never run into a burning building, or a fire, or whatever, as long as your safe." Hiro relaxed a little and took a deep breath.

"…Thanks Tadashi"

Tadashi smiled, rubbing his shoulder. " So that's it? No more secrets or anything else right?" He chuckled slightly at this. Hiro hummed in thought for a moment before opening his mouth.

"…Actually, just to get it all up in the air…the reason I dropped the eggs at the store the other day was because the lady in front of us had a ton of meat that was bleeding… it made my stomach churn, and I accidentally dropped them." Tadashi sadly smiled at him, feeling bad that he didn't know what was going on. Hiro rubbed the back of his neck and continued. " Then when I dropped the eggs, the look of it and the smell made me feel sick…so I had to get out before I added more the mess…" The corner of his mouth lifted into a small smile, and he looked away a little embarrassed. Tadashi sighed and placed a hand on his head.

" Well, then I'm sorry for getting mad, but I didn't know you weren't feeling well.."

Hiro brushed it off and slightly shook his head. " It's fine. It's not you're fault."

Tadashi smiled at his brother and nodded. Happy with how things panned out, Tadashi reached over and grabbed the bottle of vitamin water, and handed it to his brother. Hiro gladly took it, and sipped at it, but his face crumpled after a few sips and he pulled the bottle away from him.

Tadashi looked over at him " What's wrong?"

Hiro put a hand to his stomach and rubbed it slowly.

"…I don't feel very good.."

Immediately, Tadashi jumped up and ran other to the other side of the bed where his aunt had placed a bucket for them, just in case. Thank you! Grabbing the bucket, he placed it under his brothers chin just in time, as Hiro violently got sick.

\- - -

Tadashi sat on the bed with Hiro as he threw up a second time. The boy coughed and spit into the bucket, moaning slightly. Resting his head on the rim of the bucket, he clutched it for dear life as he prepared himself for another bout to rip through him.

"..This sucks.."

Tadashi could only do so much, but he had to wait it out while the sickness took its course. Lifting his head, Hiro grabbed the bucket tighter, and held in a silent cry as his stomach contracted and squeezed out the remains of this stomach. With nothing left to throw up, Hiro was left sore and very exhausted. Tadashi quickly grabbed the bucket as Hiro slowly began to pass out into a world of sleep.

Tadashi set the bucket down and clutched his brother by the shoulders, lowering him down to the bed. Hiro brought his hand up to his head, and softly moaned at how uncomfortable he was.

" My head is killing me…" Hiro whined quietly, putting pressure on his returning migraine. Tadashi reached over and took more pills out for him, hoping he would keep it down. Handing him the water, Hiro took it very slowly, afraid to drink anything because of last time. After swallowing the last pill, Hiro already looked to be asleep.

Looking at the clock, it read 7:42. The cafe was closed by now, and Aunt Cass was probably just about done with all the cleanup and closing stuff. He guess she would be coming up soon.

Tadashi pulled the now warm cool pack off his head, and replaced it with a cool towel. Hiro cracked his eye open as Tadashi gently ran a second towel over his face and neck, wiping off the sweat. Very sloppily and with no strength, Hiro tried to swat him away

"…st…op..Tada..shi"

Tadashi just smiled and and continued to cool his brother off.

" Sorry bro, but I think that you getting the weight of the dream off your chest had awakened whatever this is. And with the sickness before, it's just piled on top of it. Thats what happens when you bottle stuff in, bonehead. It can really take a toll on your body."

"..ya really..think so?" Hiro slurred slightly as he began to relax, finally feeling a little cooled down, and slowly drifted off.

" I know so, Hiro." He continued to wash the sweat off his face, and Hiro's breathing slowed, showing he was finally asleep. Tadashi took a deep breath. This was difficult, and not in a way that it kept him up, or it was hard work. It was emotionally draining. He was up the night before with Hiro when he was having those nightmares, and he had a feeling he was in for a long night again. Leaving his brother, he walked to the bathroom to re-cool one of the clothes and to wash out the bucket.

Tadashi could hear his aunt coming up the stairs and poked his head out of the bathroom. Cass hovered at the top, waiting for Tadashi to finish, holding a plate and a bowl.

" I brought you up some dinner. How is he doing?"

Tadashi dried his hands and spoke softly. " He's doing better now. Just threw up a couple times, but he just fell asleep." Cass looked over at her youngest nephew and made her way over to the bed, bending down to place a hand on his face.

" He still feels really warm…do you know what his temperatures at?"

Tadashi mentally kicked himself for not checking on that, which should have been the first thing. Shaking his head, he aunt took a mental guess and pulled the covers up to his chin. She went to his dresser and pulled out a shirt for him, considering he may want one when he wakes up.

Everything seemed to be fine for now. The cafe was closed, so Cass offered to watch over Hiro while Tadashi get some work done, but he politely declined.

" Tadashi, I want you to be able to take a break-"

" It's fine Aunt Cass, really. He's sleeping now, So i'm just going to work. Besides, you have to be up early to prepare for work tomorrow, You really should get some rest."  
Cass sighed, knowing her nephew had a point. She wished she could just close tomorrow, but that wasn't what they agreed on. Nodding slowing, Cass agreed to let Tadashi handle it, and after checking Hiro one last time, she turned to leave.

" Alright, but please wake me for anything okay? and as soon as he wakes up, please check his fever to make sure it hasn't gone up. If it reaches past 102.7, I want to know."

Tadashi nodded his head, and Aunt Cass smiled at him. Quickly giving him a hug, she bid him goodnight, and retreated downstairs. The older Hamada then went to his work desk to begin working. It was past 8 now, too early for bed, but he had plenty work to do to keep him occupied. he worked straight till about 9:45 when he heard Hiro toss a bit in bed. getting up to check on him, he was fine. At 10:04, Hiro moaned quietly, making Tadashi distracted, listening for anymore sounds. When he heard none he got up to make sure Hiro was still alive. He was fine. 10:12, Hiro let out a couple of coughs, and that was when Tadashi moved to work at Hiro's desk.


	8. Chapter 8

At around 2:00 am, Hiro began coughing, alot. Woken up by it, Tadashi got right up and moved to see if he needed water. The younger Hamada had been dead asleep since that past evening, and had not woken up once till this started. Rolling over on his side, Hiro brought a hand to his mouth as he grew into a coughing fit. Tadashi sighed as he noticed Hiro waking up. _Please go back to sleep…_

Tadashi sat on the edge of the bed and unscrewed the cap of a water bottle for him. Hiro slowly pushed himself up with any energy it could muster. He had none. Just getting himself to sit up was difficult. Tadashi placed a hand on Hiro's back to give him a little help, and brought the bottle to his lips. After just waking up after sleeping for around 7 hours, Hiro still looked exhausted. His hair was stuck in all directions, worse then normal with it being wet with sweat. His eyes were half closed, completely glazed over. His skin was pale, but cheeks bright red. Sweat of course glistened off his skin, and his lips were dry.

Tadashi was worried that Hiro wasn't getting enough liquids. He was able to keep medicines and water down so far, but whenever he would take a drink, it was a sip at a time. He was sweating so much he was pretty sure any liquids in his system would be sweat out. Tadashi looked over to the dresser and saw the shirt his aunt had laid out for him. She had taken the other one off due to him being too hot, but at this rate, he would rather him sweat through his shirts then the sheets.

Hiro took a sip of water and pushed the bottle back into Tadashi's hand.

"Hiro, please try to have a little more. I don't think you're getting enough fluids. "  
Hiro ignored him completely, or didn't hear him. He seems like he was only half conscious , not registering really what was going on. Deciding to give up for now, being reminded of the time, the older Hamada set the bottle down, figuring he would make him drink more tomorrow when he was awake.

Tadashi, remembering his aunts words, reached over and grabbed the thermometer off the bedside table. Hiro attempted to lay down again and sleep, But Tadashi keep a hold of his upper arm.

" Wait Hiro, I need to take your temperature"

Hiro tried to pull away, but of course, was unsuccessful "…T'dashi..let go.."

" Not gonna work little bro, here" Tadashi held the thermometer in front of Hiro's mouth, but the kid refused it, pulling instead and turning his head away. Tadashi sighed. _Really?.._

"C'mon, stop it. The more you fight the longer it's going to take." Hiro was pulling as far away as he could, determine not to put the device in his mouth, and just go back to sleep.

" Tadashi, stop! Let me sleep, we'll do it later…"

" We'll do it now, and also later. Don't be a baby, just open."

…Still unsuccessful. Hiro would have none of it. Tadashi laid his head back in frustration, and looked at the clock again. 2:11am, this was getting old. He wanted to sleep too, but instead he was wresting with his brother who was too weak right now to fight off a fly. Fine, if he wasn't going to cooperate, then he would use force.

Tadashi got up and went on the other side of the bed. With more room, he was able to climb behind Hiro and get a grasp on his shoulders, firmly pressing his brother against his chest. Hiro squirmed and tried to turn his head to the side and pull away, but Tadashi was quicker. Putting the thermometer in one hand, he gently took hold of Hiro's jaw, keeping his facing forward and still, and aimed the device at his mouth. Hiro tried to pry away his brother's arms, but it was useless. There was no way they were a match in strength, even healthy.

Tadashi put the device in his mouth, sliding it between his fingers, and kept a solid hold on it. At that point, Hiro gave up on his struggle, and sighed heavily. Tadashi smirked and shook his head slightly. Was it really worth the fight? He could have been sleeping by now.

Sitting there waiting and knowing Hiro would sit still now, Tadashi let go of Hiro's face, and moved them to his shoulders instead to gently massage them. His back was very knotted feeling and stiff. No wonder Hiro seemed uncomfortable. Tomorrow, he would definitely do what he could to make him feel a little more comfortable and relaxed. He hadn't gotten to spend much time with Hiro since he also started college. Both boys were very busy with school work that other then the time in the lab, they never got to say more then a few words to each other. Hiro also came home with a very heavy backpack everyday, and was always falling asleep in strange places, like his work desk or sitting up in a chair. None of that would do any favors on his back.

Hiro leaned forward as Tadashi gently worked his shoulders. He seemed to be enjoying it, and it would probably be happy to have one tomorrow. Tadashi opened his mouth to speak, but was alerted to the beeping of the device instead. Taking the thermometer out, he held it up to read it.

102.6, the same as his aunt had said it was earlier. At least it wasn't higher anyways, that was good.

" Is it going down?" Hiro croaked out.

" No…102.6 is still pretty high, but your probably still sweating it out, so it will hopefully be better tomorrow. How are you feeling?" Tadashi asked, not getting a chance to ask him when he woke up.

Hiro brought a hand to his head, and rubbed his eye. He hummed for a second, then rubbed his throat. "…My throat is really sore.." Tadashi continued to rub his shoulders, and listening to the way his brother talked, he could tell it was probably sore. He didn't have anything for this throat up here, so he would remedy that tomorrow.

Tadashi spoke up. " How does you head and stomach feel?"

"..It hurts, but not as bad as before."

"Thats good to hear. I'll give you some more medicine for it, then you can go back to sleep okay? Tomorrow, I'll continue working out the knots in your back. It's a mess bud."

Hiro smirked alittle at this. " yeah, _I know_." At least Hiro could still give back smart remarks. Tadashi got up off the bed and walked over to the dresser, grabbing the shirt.

" Here, why don't you put this on before you ruin the sheets sweating through them.."

Hiro looked down, confused. He didn't even remember why he wasn't wearing a shirt…taking it out of his brothers hand, he slipped it on. Tadashi walked over to take out more headache relief and another fever reducer, and handed him the pills and vitamin water.

Hiro reached over the take them, and quickly got them down. Now he was free to sleep. As soon as his head hit the pillow, the change in his stomach hit him hard and quick. He didn't even see it coming, until Hiro quickly sat up and curled an arm around his stomach. Tadashi ran over, grabbing the bucket and tucking it under his chin just in time as Hiro vomited the water and pills he just took. It didn't last long luckily, as Tadashi rubbed circles on his back.

Tadashi clicked his tongue in sympathy " ohh bud.."

Hiro sat panting over the bucket, and pushed it away signaling he was okay for now, and asked for another headache pill.

" Hiro, I don't want to give you anymore if your just gonna-"

" Please" Hiro asked, keeping his head down, resting it on his hand. " I feel better now that I did that. Can I please try again? I can take it" Tadashi reluctantly gave in, and handed him another pill and plain water this time. After taking it, Tadashi laid his brother down, and he was out.

He walked over to set the cooled cloth back on his brothers head, and sat with him for a minute, pondering.

When _was_ the last time he had spent some quality time with Hiro? The brothers use to be so close, playing with each other all day long, talking about everything, and being in each others company 24-7. Now the boys would sit at the same table and head to school together, but that was it. It was always work with them. They never spent their days off hanging out just the two of them. Never had any bonding moments. Never had deep conversations anymore…nothing. Hiro was super busy with classes, and Tadashi on his projects that they would see each other in the lab and talk, but it was with their friends. If he had made a point to sit with Hiro each evening, he probably would have noticed how unwell he had been. How much school was a weight on his shoulders, literally. How he never got to really be a kid.

Tadashi felt bad. He felt like he had failed. Sure, Hiro was growing up and he himself was an adult, but they were still brothers. They could spare an hour after school just to hang out, to go for a walk, or work on a new invention together like they use too. Suddenly, Hiro's nightmares seemed to make sense. Hiro was probably feeling this way too, and noticed how they have been slipping apart. He probably had a fear of Tadashi leaving him forever, and being out of his life, busy with his own. Hiro was a smart kid, and the gears in his head never stopped turning. It's no surprise that his fears and worries caused his body to react this way, sending him into a downward spiral. His fear of loosing Tadashi one day was real, and It's no wonder he ended up this way. He didn't have any friends his own age, and spent all his time with his brother and older friends that if they were out of his life, he would be alone. If they had more sit down time and talks with each other, Hiro probably would have come forward with his nightmares and fears right as soon as they happened. Thats how things use to be. Tadashi wouldn't have to pry it out of his brother until he hit a nerve, and Hiro would collapse under his emotions he kept stored up. It wasn't fair, to either of them.

Tomorrow, Tadashi promised himself he would reassure Hiro, and mention a couple of things hes figured out. He knew if he confronted Hiro about them, he would shy away and close up. Tadashi was going to make sure to come about it lightly, as his own observations. This was going to help him, both of them in fact.

"I'm sorry, Hiro" Tadashi quietly whispered as he pet through his brothers hair. " I feel like I did this too you. I promise, I'm going to be a better brother too you. I'm going to make this right, and get you better."

Tadashi quietly stood up and walked back to his side of the room. It was currently 2:30am, he needed to get back to sleep. Nestling down in his bed, listening to his brothers breathing, he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Hiro woke up again an hour later. He startled himself awake, and looked frantically around the room. When he couldn't find Tadashi, He began to quietly panic. Scenes from his nightmare were beginning to flood his mind as he quietly wrapped his arms around himself, and called for his brother. Voice barely above a whisper, he called again, and yet his brother was nowhere to be found. Hiro contemplated going to look for him, but couldn't get his legs to move. They hurt, along with the rest of his body. The worst of it thought was probably his head. The pain throbbed in his skull. He couldn't yell louder if he wanted too.

His hands pressed against the sides of his head and and he shut his eyes tightly. He was sure that his head was going to burst. He needed to find his brother though, that was the only thing that was on him mind.

Keeping one hand on his head, and one eye squint open, Hiro brought his legs over the side of the bed. Placing his hand on the table next to him, brushing the medicine bottles and bowl of water, he tried to stand up. On shaky legs, he managed to hold his weight, but it was futile. Standing only made his head pound harder. Where was his brother? He whispered his name, but still no answer. Worried that his nightmare was true and that he was really gone, he tried to take a step.

Hiro's one leg was unable to support himself, and buckled weakly under his weight. He reached out with his other arm to catch himself, but ended up with it sliding across the side table, and successfully flinging every medicine bottle and the bowl of water onto the floor. Hiro slid down the side of his bed, and landed on the floor with a thump.

Tadashi threw his eyes open with the clattering of the items hitting the floor, and the solid thump that followed. Jumping out of bed, he quickly made his way over the Hiro's side of the room, only to find him not in bed. Tadashi scanned the room, but his little brother was no where to be found. Walking on the other side of the bed, he managed to kick a pill bottle on his way, and found His brother sitting on the floor, groaning in frustration.

"..H…Hiro! What the…what happened?" Tadashi ran over to his brother, and helped him up by his arm. Hiro quickly brushed him off, anger turning into a sense of relief on his face. Tadashi helped sit his brother back on the bed, and Hiro looked slightly embarrassed, pulling back his arm and curing it into himself.

Tadashi looked at his brother concerned, eyes glancing towards to the clock. It was close to 4 am. Taking a deep breath, Tadashi scanned Hiro for any injuries, but found none. He quickly picked up the meds and wiped up the spill on the floor. Hiro apologized, but Tadashi waved it off. Once everything was back to normal, he cleared his throat and spoke up.

" What happened? Did you fall out of bed? Did you need to throw up?"

Hiro looked embarrassed at the question, and clenched his jaw back. " N..No! Of course not" he rubbed the sweat off his head and spoke quietly. "…I tried to get up but I slipped. It's not a big deal, I'm fine. You can go back to bed." Hiro brought a hand up to his head, willing the pounding to go away.

Tadashi looked at his brother questionably. Something was off. The fever still raged within him, but he seemed to be more conscious then he had been….that was a good sign. Still, Tadashi sighed.

" You know, If you needed help getting up, you could have called me. Thats what I'm her for."

"I didn't need your help." Hiro looked away and rubbed the back of his neck.

"Then what did you get up for? Do you need the bathroom?"

Hiro grew even more embarrassed at that, thankful for the fever to hide it. " W..What? No! no…I said I'm f-"

"Hiro"

Hiro sighed. He knew Tadashi wasn't going to let it go. His body still hurt, and he was getting tired again. The headache continued to throb, and Tadashi's questioning wasn't helping. He didn't want to tell Tadashi he was getting up to look for him. It was fine in the timing before, but now it seemed silly. He didn't want Tadashi to think of him as a little kid who needed his brother.

"…Can I have something for my head?.." Hiro whispered.

Tadashi checked the clock and reluctantly shook his head. " Sorry bro, you had one an hour ago. You need to wait a couple hours before I can give you more. I can go downstairs and grab a tylenol and-"

"No! No..please don't go…." Hiro looked away, embarrassed at what he just asked, but he didn't want him to leave. Tadashi picked up on this, and had forgotten that Hiro was afraid for him to leave. His pinched his lips and thought for a moment, letting the awkward silence end. "….Sorry, you have to wait a little bit okay? then you can have more."

Hiro whined in disappointment, his eyebrows pinching together. Tadashi felt bad, He knew this was hard for him. Hiro looked absolutely miserable. Tadashi thought back to what his mother would do in a time like this, and had an idea. It would maybe help.

" I've got an idea.."

Tadashi brought his pillows over to Hiro's bed, and set them to rest up against the back so he could comfortably sit up. Hiro watching in question, looking like he was going to interject, but kept his mouth shut. After setting things up, Tadashi climbed into the bed, sitting up against the pillows, and motioned his little brother to sit next to him in the crook of his arm.

" Tadashi, c'mon I don't need to be-"

" Just come over here bonehead, this will help."

Hiro sighed, and scooted over to his designated space, comfortably wedged in between the side table and his brother. Once settled, Tadashi quickly rested his hand on Hiro's head. He knew he still had a fever, but it was instinctual. Hiro's face frowned, annoyed with the constant checking.

" Just hold on…"The older Hamada scoffed and reached over and grabbed the cool towel, and rested it on the back of his brothers neck. Hiro leaned against Tadashi's side, as his brother had his arm around him, and used his fingers to gently rub circles on Hiro's temples.

Hiro closed his eyes and let the light massage on his head sink it. It felt good, really good.

" How does that feel?" Tadashi questioned.

Hiro moaned slightly, and quietly responded "…Mmm..good."

The brothers sat in silence for a few minutes, until Tadashi pushed the question again.  
" Now..what where you getting up for?"

Hiro groaned loudly. There was no point in trying to avoid the question or lie about it, he would somehow find out anyways. Besides, right now Hiro felt actually comfortable, so he really didn't even care at this point. He was going to fall asleep any minute.

"…I was looking for you, okay?"

Tadashi stopped massaging, and bent down to look at his brother, who had opened his eyes as soon as his head massage stopped. " Me? How come? Did you have another bad dream? Cause If you did, I'm sorry I-"

"No no…" Hiro interrupted. "At least, I don't think so….I don't really remember why, okay? I just…woke up and you weren't there and I…panicked a little…just a little, I don't know…It's dumb, forget about it." Hiro trailed off, embarrassed, but all Tadashi felt was a deep concern and slight guilt. He knew Hiro's fear and what his bad dreams meant, and yet he never stopped to think what would happen if he were to wake up and not see him there. Hiro was playing it off like it was not a big deal, and that it was silly for him to feel like that, but Tadashi knew it meant more to him then what he was letting on. He saw the relief in his face when he came over to see what had happened. And he knew that every time Hiro woke up, he would search for his older brother. Tadashi knew that his feelings were real, and not some fever induced delusion of randomly wanting his brother, They were deeper then that, But Hiro understandably was pushing it off, to not seem childish. _Maybe I should sleep next to his bed or in view.._ Tadashi thought to himself.

" It's not dumb Hiro. I understand, don't worry." Tadashi continued to rub his temples trying to think of a quick solution, and then having one idea that could help. "I'm going to take down the divider tomorrow, I've got to fix the holes in it anyways…" Adding that last part in to give it a legit excuse to aid in Hiro's need. Hiro said nothing, but Tadashi could feel his sink down further, as relief seemed to wash over him.

Hiro sank into a deep sleep shortly afterward. Tadashi laid there, and continued to rub his brothers head. He was exhausted as well, but he couldn't shake off the feeling that Hiro was still keeping his walls up with him. He didn't need to feel embarrassed in admitting he wanted to be reassured his brother was there. After the hell hes been experiencing in his dreams, of course Tadashi would understand why he needed to see his brother. Hiro also had a habit of waking up from a bad dream, and instantly forgetting it, but the feelings and thoughts were still there. If he felt like he needed to do something after waking up from that, then he had every right too if it would put his busy mind at ease, even if he didn't always understand it.

The hypnotic circles he was rubbing on Hiro's head was making him drowsy, and the older Hamada closed his eyes, letting sleep take him.

* * *

Hiro hadn't woken up all day, not even when Tadashi woke up early and maneuvered himself around his sleeping brother to get up. Aunt Cass made a point to come up a few minutes before she opened the cafe. Tadashi was luckily awake when she came up. He had wanted to talk with her, but he wasn't going to lie, he was nervous. He was afraid to leave the room. The fear that Hiro would wake up and panic was great, and he didn't want to put any more stress on his little brother. Not to mention the question he had asked his aunt seemed unfair to him.

 _\- earlier that morning -_

Tadashi was just done slipping on his shirt when Cass came up the stairs. He returned her smile as she walked over to check on her little nephew. He looked so small curled up in his bed, but he seemed to be relaxed. Cass rested her hand on his forehead, then drew her hand away and walked towards her oldest. She looked like she had a couple questions, but Tadashi did as well and they retreated to his side of the room to have a quick talk.

" How was he last night? He still feels warm, but he seems comfortable "

Tadashi bit his lip, debating what he should exactly tell his aunt. He didn't want to spill it all, for the sake of Hiro's trust and to not embarrass him…but he also wanted Cass to understand what he was struggling with, and didn't want secrets.

" Umm…well, he was awake a couple times. He threw up once, but was fine after. Last I checked, he was at 102.6 degrees." Aunt case chewed her lip in thought. Not saying anything, Tadashi continued.

" But listen, Aunt Cass..I talked with him last night and we talked about his nightmares..and….he panics if I'm not there. His nightmares are about me leaving him…or…dying….I don't really understand it but he's afraid I'm going to leave him and not come back, and I'm afraid that I'm going to be downstairs and he's going to wake up and-"

"shhhhh…Tadashi, calm down sweetie. I understand." Cass placed her hand on her nephews shoulder, trying to calm him down. This was obviously bothering Tadashi as well, and she didn't need both of them to get sick. She led Tadashi to his bed, sitting them both down. She took a good look at him, and her face fell. He was really, really tired looking, and seemed to be taking Hiro's bad dreams hard. She guessed he was feeling guilty that he would leave Hiro in his dreams, and not be able to convince him in real life that he would never do that. He kept his head down and rubbed the back of his neck. She didn't want to see him like that, not over something like a bad dream. Although it was a bad dream, she still needed to be the brave one in control. She grabbed his hand, making him look up at her.

" Honey, listen. I know you want to help, but I think I'm going to close the cafe for today. I can always open later if things are going alright, but I can't stand seeing you so tired and run down by this."

Tadashi looked at her in shock, afraid of what vibe he was giving off. He didn't mean to make it seem like he couldn't handle it.

" N…no! no no it's not like that! What I mean is….that Hiro's sickness stemmed from some worries hes had. I'm going to stay here with him! It's not too much for me or anything, I'm just tired cause I was up with him a couple times last night….don't get the wrong idea Aunt Cass, I don't want to you close the cafe today, that's why I'm here."

Cass smiled slightly and sighed. After a moment of contemplating, she agreed to keep open, but she wasn't letting him off the hook yet.

"Well, you seem like you have something on your mind honey, what is it?"

Tadashi looked around and rubbed his neck again, something he always did when he was nervous. After a moment, he spoke up. " Well…I…I really don't want to leave the room…If I can help it…not if he's asleep. So…I was just wondering…If maybe I could text you if I couldn't leave?..Or..if I needed to get something but…"

Cass could do nothing but smile. Of course, Tadashi would be the one to worry and fret at needing to ask anymore from his Aunt. She already did everything from running the cafe to taking care of her family. He hated having to ask for more from her, when it was something as stupid as not wanting to leave the room. It wasn't stupid tho, and Cass knew that. She smiled and rubbed his back, chuckling alittle. Tadashi trailed off speaking when she began to laugh slightly, and looked over as her confused.

" Tadashi…honey of _course_ you can ask me for anything! I understand completely, and I agree. I don't want you leaving for any reason, and risk putting Hiro through something he shouldn't need to be worrying about. I'm going to make a point to come up and check on you as often as I can okay? I really appreciate you staying home to help out, it's the least I can do."

Tadashi released a breath he didn't know what he holding, and smiled alittle. To think he was nervous for nothing.

"..Thanks Aunt Cass.."

Cass stood up and smiled, reaching over to hug her nephew, he returned it warmly. She was so lucky to have such a great kid.

" Okay, now the cafe opens soon, so this is the chance to tell me what you need…also what you would like to eat."

Tadashi sat with his aunt for a few more minutes, asking her about cough medicine and maybe getting an ear thermometer for when he was asleep. It would be easier to take his temperature when they needed too, verses waiting for him to wake up. Hiro was a heavy sleeper anyways, so it would be okay.

She returned with the items, and some food for the both of them. Hiro didn't eat the soup from last night, so Cass took the old bowl down with her after replacing it with a new, warmed up one, telling Tadashi to make sure he eats when he wakes up. Keeping her cell phone in her pocket today, she made her way back downstairs to open the cafe, leaving things in the capable hands of her oldest one.

 _-back to the present -_

Tadashi had been working on his project and schoolwork all day. He went over to check on Hiro periodically, but the kid was dead to the world. It was currently after noon, and He hadn't woken up once. Tadashi even managed to sneak in a little nap for an hour, and his brother was still asleep. 20 minutes before the lunch rush at the cafe, Cass wandered upstairs to check on her nephews, but was surprised to hear that Hiro hadn't woken up yet. She immediately became concerned, and rushed over to make sure he was alive. Of course, Tadashi assured her that he was fine, and that his fever wasn't any worse, that he was just sleeping it off. His temperature fluctuated off and on while he slept, falling as low as 101.9, but never going above 102.6, which is what it has been at mostly and currently.

She nodded at this and insisted that he call her if it goes up. He assured her that he could handle it and would call her with any concerns, and with that, she went to go prepare for the rush.

It was now 2:00 and Hiro was still sleep. He would toss and turn a bit, but he seemed okay otherwise. No bad dreams either.

Putting his book down, he pinched between his eyes. As much as he wanted to be home here, it was incredibly boring. He was glad that nothing big was happening, and Hiro was getting the sleep that he needed, but to be sitting in the room all day working on schoolwork was droning. He had plenty of things to keep him occupied though. His circle of friends had texted him a few times, asking how things were going and if Hiro was any better. Letting them know the news, he told them he would be out the rest of the week, but thanked them again for keeping an eye on things for him.

Moving to grab his laptop, he switched to working on the coding he needed for his project. Being here with Hiro all day was giving him all sorts of new ideas and reminding him of important things to incorporate into his project. It was essential to look at things from all angles when designing something that would help people.

Dug so deep in his work, Tadashi wasn't even aware of Hiro slowly pushing himself up off his stomach.


	9. Chapter 9

Tadashi sat with Hiro as he violently threw up again in the toilet. The older brother shushed the younger as he whined pitifully, clenching his stomach as he bent over the rim of the bowl to throw up nothing but stomach bile. The kid had hardly eaten anything in 2 days, today definitely nothing. His back was sticky with sweat and his hair was plastered to his face.

Tadashi wasn't even convinced any of what he was doing was helping. Telling him everything will be okay was just meaningless words. Sure, they were true, but it wasn't going to help any. If anything, it would frustrating the poor kid more. The muscles in his back contracted, as another wave ripped through him, successfully turning into dry heaving. Tears pricked the corner of Hiro's eyes as he finished his bout, and if it wasn't for his brother holding him steady, he would have dropped right to the floor. Tadashi kept his Hand on Hiro's forehead, holding his bangs out of his face as he let his head rest on the seat. The other hand was rubbing his back, trying to ease his aching muscles.

The minute that Hiro sat up in his bed not 5 minutes ago, after Tadashi finally noticed him up, he knew something was wrong. He had turned around, and saw Hiro on propped up on his arms, legs curled under him. The blanket and his oversized shirt hung from his shoulders, and his hair was stuck to his face. His eyes were half lidded, completely glazed over. He stared at nothing, and looked like a bear cub who had just come out of hibernation.

Looking over, Tadashi knew he was only half conscious, and asked him how he was feeling. Hiro said nothing, but after a minute he muttered he needed to pee. Only natural, the kids been in bed for 2 days. Tadashi walked with him to the door. Once he was finished, Hiro walked out, only to run back in and get sick instantly. The older Hamada jumped up from his desk and ran in after hearing Hiro throw up.

Tadashi knew they couldn't go on like this. With his hand on his forehead, Tadashi could feel him burning up more. It was getting to the point he was going to suffer from dehydration, and if his fever got any worse, they would probably need to take him to a hospital.

Hiro began to dry heave again, letting nothing but a trail of saliva exit his mouth. That's when Tadashi stepped in.

" Okay, take deep breathes….thats it." Tadashi soothed as his brother did his best to listen and follow instruction. He was trying, but it was hard. The older brother continued to shush him, slowly rubbing up and down Hiro's back in sync with his breathing. It was relaxing, and it slowly began to work.

Once Hiro successfully calmed down his stomach, he pushed back with the help of Tadashi and sat on the floor. This whole ordeal had exhausted him to the point of collapsing. Tadashi was getting worried at this point. His brother needed to cool down. Glancing over at the tub, he debated filling it with cool water, but knew Hiro would fight that option tooth and nail, possibly worsening his condition. Not wanting to leave his side, he mentally kicked himself for not grabbing the thermometer before rushing in.

Hiro sat on the floor, eyes closed, and taking deep breaths. Tadashi hummed in thought, wondering If he should get Aunt Cass. He was unsure of what to do at this point. He knew he needed to get his temperature down, and he needed him to drink more water. It was getting him to do it that was the hard part.

"…Do you think you can get back to bed?" Tadashi asked quietly, aware of Hiro's headache. It wasn't a migraine this time, but it was pulsing because of what he just went through. He didn't want to make it worse. Hiro slowly nodded, looking utterly miserable, and the boys slowly got up and made there way back to bed. At this point, Hiro was now awake, tho his body was exhausted, he figured he would just go back to sleep.

Tadashi helped his brother back into his bed. He grabbed a new shirt, instructing him to take his sweat soaked one off. The older Hamada sat in the chair next to the bed, waiting for him to finish changing, and grabbed the thermometer.

Hiro's shoulders dropped in annoyance, as the device was placed under his tongue. The room went silent as the boys waited for what felt like 10 minutes. Tadashi knew he felt warmer then before, but prayed it wasn't past 103 degrees. The device finally beeped, and Tadashi wasted no time taking it out of his brothers mouth to read it. Holding his breath, he was a little relieved to read it said 102.9, but that still wasn't good. Aunt Cass wanted to know if it ever reached that point, and Tadashi was sure she was going to call a doctor if it got to that. Taking a hold of the water bottle, Tadashi decided he would give one more try himself before coming to that, and handed his brother the bottle.

" Here, drink this." Tadashi passed him the bottle of water. Hiro took small sip as usual, and passed it back, only for it to be refused. He looked at Tadashi's face, who was staring sternly at him.

" Drink more, keep going." His brother pushed.

" I don't want anymore.." Hiro quickly said, and put the bottle down himself.

" Hiro, listen. Your dehydrated, and it's going to get worse. You're not eating, and you're still throwing up. You need to be drinking, or we are going to have to make a tough decision."

Hiro raised his eyes to his brother, looking square at him in the face. Tadashi almost looked away at the pitiful look on Hiro's face. He looked so sick and miserable, and yet his eyes were showing a look of betrayal, and he didn't even say what it was he would have to be forced to do yet.

In a small, panicked way, Hiro spoke up " W…what do you mean?"

Tadashi signed from pure sympathy, and rubbed his knuckles anxiously. " … What I mean, is that If you don't start getting better soon, or If we can't get your temperature down, then I'm going to bring you to the hospital to get fluids in you and lower your fever."

Hiro became wide eyed and angry instantly at the mention of it. He backed away on the bed and pointed an angry finger at his brother " You can't do that!" Hiro said in a voice louder then he meant too. " I'm _NOT_ going to any hospital! I don't care what you say, _NOT. HAPPENING_."

Tadashi tried to kept his patience, knowing that yelling at him wasn't going to help. He took deep breath and tried to act calmly and rationally.

" Hiro, look, I understand you don't want that. I don't want that for you either! But you need to understand that at this point, it could get dangerous! Your body will slowly start shutting down and-"

" I know what happens Tadashi! I'm not stupid! and I don't care, I'm not going!" Hiro folded his arms and tried to stare his brother down. Tadashi was getting frustrated.

" Hiro! I'm not saying we are going now, all I'm saying is that we need to do what we can, _right now_ , to try to lower your fever and you need to drink more fluids so we can _prevent_ that! "

" I _can't_ drink more! I'll just throw it up!" Hiro interjected.

" Then try the vitamin water or the sports drink! Both are for a rehydration and-"

" Last time I tried that, I threw it up! I'm not doing it again!"

"Hiro! that was last time, you need to just try again! there's no reason to assume it won't work! God, just _think_ for a second about what your body _needs_! If you can't hold it down, we're going. I don't care if I have to carry you there myself!"

Hiro stared daggers at his brother, and clenched his teeth together. He did nothing, but give a quiet, seething " No."

Tadashi clenched his jaw backwards to keep from screaming at him. He was being argumentative and unreasonable. He drew his eyebrows together and pinched between his eyes. This wasn't working, he was being too stubborn, and letting that get in the way of being rational.

Trying to calm himself down, he lowered his tone, and tried again. " Listen to me. That was before, would you at least be willing to try it again? If you don't think you can stomach anymore regular water, at least try this, okay? Just. Try. Thats all I'm asking. _AND_ , If you can't keep it down, then we need to move on to other options, cause nothings working."

Hiro knew he was right, but didn't want to admit it. His face fell, and he looked like he was going to start whining. It was obvious to Tadashi that he was simply afraid. Afraid he wouldn't be able to keep it down, and afraid he was going to have to go to the hospital for an IV. Both, understandably were frighting for him, and he shut his mouth and dropped his arms down on the bed.

Tadashi waited for Hiro to act, to say, or do anything. He sat there for a moment, looking like he was weighing things in his mind. After a couple of minutes, Hiro looked up at Tadashi, who held a sympathetic look towards him. Rubbing at his knuckles, Hiro spoke quietly.

"…I just _really_ don't want to go to the hospital…"

Tadashi let sympathy take over completely, and he reached out to gently rub his brothers back.  
" I know, buddy. That's why we are going to exhaust every idea first before it comes to that okay? I promise, I will do everything I can before it comes to that, but you need to work with me. You may not like all the ideas, but don't make me fight you with them, cause I won't do it. "

Hiro hesitated, and looked down, as if thinking it over.

"…So I just need to drink that?.." Hiro asked in a quiet voice.

" For starters, yes. But I want you to drink as much as you can without making yourself feel sick, and you need to drink more period. No more little sips here and there. We also need to lower your temperature, because it's too high, and Aunt Cass definitely won't like it. "

Hiro reluctantly agreed, and took hold of the vitamin water, this time with no pills. He managed about half of the bottle before he needed to stop, and that was a good start. Telling Hiro not to argue, Tadashi began to cool his skin by rubbing him down with the cold cloth. Hiro obviously wanted to fight it, but chose not too as the threat for a trip to the hospital was still overhead. Tadashi moved behind Hiro to get his back, while contemplating whether or not he should suggest a cold bath or shower. He could _definitely_ use it. Hiro leaned forward as Tadashi gently rubbed the towel over his back, and he decided that instead of suggesting that yet, he would keep the mood light by giving him that massage.

* * *

Tadashi worked Hiro's shoulders, attempting to loosen up the tight muscle. Hiro held his breath for part of it, but slowly released when it started to feel good. Tadashi pinched his lips together as he slowly worked out the knots in his brothers back. This was ridiculous. The kid was 14, he shouldn't have a back like this yet.

" Jeez kiddo, we've got to cut down on your backpack weight or something cause this is nuts.."

Hiro scoffed playfully. " Yeah, tell my professors that. It's fine, It doesn't bother me too much actually."

Tadashi shook his head and smiled. He enjoyed this time with his brother, even if it was just to work out his back. But still, he had wanted to talk with him too.

" Hey…listen bud, Theres something I've been noticing and I wanted to talk to you about it.."

Hiro tensed up slightly, and watched Tadashi from the corner of his eye. There was plenty his brother could attempt to bring up.

Tadashi felt Hiro tense at this, and wanted to assure him not to freak out.

" It's nothing bad haha" Tadashi gently shook Hiro's shoulders, resulting in a smile form his little brother. Since Hiro had been up with Tadashi , he had felt a little better. Tadashi had rubbed him down with a cool towel and he replaced his shirt, that left him feeling a little more rejuvenated. That, and drinking something and being up had helped him to slowly wake from the long sleep. The massage was helping him as well. While he still had a fever, sore throat, and minor headache, it was the best hes felt in a few days. Hiro's mood had lifted since and he chuckled slightly.

" Alright bro, shoot." Hiro croaked, holding his breath as Tadashi worked on a tough spot.

Tadashi gathered his thoughts for a moment, then spoke.

" Have you noticed we haven't spent much time with each other anymore?"

Tadashi could feel Hiro shift slightly, and could see the gears turning in his head. This approach was perfect. Coming from Tadashi's observation, Hiro could then perceive that it was something that Tadashi had noticed from himself, not feel like he was pressuring his little brother for more on what was bothering him. This way, both could talk about a topic that involved both their feelings, not pressuring on one side. While Hiro tended to keep this emotions to himself, this way Tadashi could let Hiro open up while making them both vulnerable.

Hiro straightened himself alittle, and cleared his throat. "..y…yeah, I guess. But, you're so busy with school, and I'm in school now, so it's only natural."

 _It's only natural_. Really? Is that natural to get so busy that you don't have time for family anymore? That it was an okay excuse to ignore your brother? Tadashi thought for a moment, then replied.

" Yeah, thats true. But you know, just cause we both are a little busy doesn't mean we have to stop hanging out."

"Well, we hang out at school sometimes in the lab.."

Tadashi thought deeply….confused with the way this was going "Yeah…..with our friends. and I love that! But you know, sometimes, I want to hang out with just my little brother." Tadashi stopped working on his back for a moment, and Hiro turned his head to look at him.

Hiro's face fell slightly, leaving Tadashi slightly confused at what he seemed to be getting upset at. He thought this was what Hiro had wanted! Did he not want to spend time with his older brother?

Tadashi looked at him questionably, and spoke slowly. "What I'm trying to say bro, is that I think we should set some time aside each week for just the two of us…"

Hiro looked up at him, and spoke quietly. " Yeah, sure. I think that would be good."

Tadashi pressed his lips together and shut his jaw. Hiro didn't seem into this conversation, and his response to his own deep suggestion was so monotone that he didn't seem like he cared at all. " Hiro…do you not want to spend time with me?.."

Hiro looked up at his brother in shock. " W..What?! No! No of course not! Of course I want it! that's all I ever wanted!" Hiro shut him mouth quickly, not meaning for that to slip through. Tadashi stared at him in shock and confusion. To deep in, he figured he would continue. " What I mean is, I don't want you to stop your life for my sake…you're already missing school because of me.."

Tadashi shook his head at his brother…Is this what all this had been about? Not wanting to trouble him? Not wanting to pull him away from his friends and the life hes building for himself, just because Hiro wanted him instead? Of course he would pick Hiro over _anything_! He admitted that he had been distracted and busy and had fell into the habit of ignoring his little brother. But Hiro wasn't making much of an effort, or hadn't seemed to noticed either. Was that because he felt that way? He didn't want to be a bother, so he forced himself away?

Tadashi shook his head and pet through his brothers hair. " Hiro, for gods sake I _want_ to spend time with you! I guess I've just been busy with school and things that I didn't mean to push you out of it. I want to make time for you, you're my best friend!"

Hiro looked completely stunned. He knew Tadashi loved him of course, but he didn't think that Tadashi would always want to spend time with him. With his brother in his 20s and Hiro 14, and age gap was rather large. Things Tadashi could be doing, he couldn't do with his brother.

Hiro looked up at him with such a look of relief, and muttered a hushed " ..Really?.."

Tadashi laughed and ruffled his brother's hair " Of course! Hiro, I'm your older brother. I want to be there with you through it all. Sure there are moments where I may not be able to be a part of things, and same goes for you, but that doesn't mean we stop being brothers. I'll always try to make time to spend time with you, because I want too, and because I love you."

Hiro genuinely smiled at Tadashi, and reached over to envelop him him a hug. Tadashi was taken aback, and breathed a sigh of relief, returning the hug. He squeezed Hiro tightly, as his little brother nuzzled into him.

Tadashi held on to his brother, not wanting to let him go." I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong impression. That's why I wanted to talk about it, because you seemed to not want to be around me. But when you started getting bad dreams and not wanting me to leave…..well, you're confusing me bro. I can't keep up haha." Tadashi rubbed Hiro's back as he slowly pulled himself away from the hug.

Hiro looked down smiling. " Yeah..I'm sorry. I don't want you to think I didn't want you around…I just didn't want to get in your way." Tadashi gave him a silly fed up look and Hiro shook his head smiling " I know, I know…."He rubbed at his eyes tiredly and Tadashi handed him the water bottle. Finishing it down completely, he handed the empty bottle to his older sibling, looking pleased with himself. "There. I finished it all!….so..no hospital right?.."

Tadashi chuckled. " We'll have to see. It's not up to me."

Hiro rolled his eyes, understanding. He was starting to get tired, and needed to rest still. Tadashi was glad that they both had come to an understanding, and there were no more secrets between them. But Hiro wasn't out of the woods yet. There was still a matter of getting his fever to go down and making sure he could eat without throwing it up.

Tadashi reached over to grab the thermometer. Knowing the drill, Hiro took it and placed it under his tongue while Tadashi intertwined his own fingers together and waited. Hiro seemed like he felt better, so he was sure it would be down. The device beeped a minute later.

"…102.7.." Tadashi sighed. That was still above the limit Cass had set before she wanted to be notified. The older sibling groaned in frustration " _Ugh…C'mon_ ….How do you feel Hiro?" Tadashi reached over to rest his hand on his head. Hiro shrugged his shoulders.

" I feel better then the past few days, but still not good…"

" Well, what are you feeling still?"

"…alittle nauseous, and my throats still sore. My body aches too.."

Tadashi rubbed down his face. " I'm sure your throats still sore cause of the vomiting….hows your head feel?"

Hiro took a moment. " It's still there…but it's not throbbing or that bad."

Tadashi sighed deeply. " Okay.." Thinking to himself, and checking what time Hiro had taken his last dosage, Tadashi gave him more pills and a new bottle of water. He also passed him the bowl of soup that his aunt had brought up that afternoon.

" I know you're still a little nauseous, but please try to eat some of it."

Hiro winced alittle looking at it. He really didn't want to eat it..

" Tadashi, I really don't know if I can-"

" I know buddy, but you have to try, alright? Part of why your stomach hurts is probably cause its hungry. This may make you feel better in the long run."

Hiro wasn't positive, but he would rather throw this up then bile if he was going to do it anyways. Taking a few spoonfuls slowly, Hiro managed half the bowl, and a few more sips of water. He probably would of had a little more, but the young Hamada had begun to fall asleep while sitting up, and Tadashi had to take the bowl away from him to prevent it from spilling. Hiro laid right down and passed out instantly. Placing the cold cloth on his head again, Tadashi rubbed up and down his arm, lost in thought.

If Hiro's temperature didn't go any lower soon, he would have no choice but to force his body to cool down. He would definitely run a cold bath for him, even if his temperature stayed the same after he woke up. Aunt Cass would also need to know, but Tadashi wanted to make sure he exhausted all their options before rushing him to a doctor or hospital. With Hiro finally resting again and nothing left to do, Tadashi turned to the desk and continued to work on his project. it was 4:12 in the evening. Hiro had been awake for a little over 2 hours today. Cass would be just getting ready for the evening rush now, and figured she would be coming up soon. He had receive a couple of texts that morning, asking If Hiro had woken up or how he was feeling..Tadashi had just replied he was asleep still, and her text slowly stopping coming in, figuring her nephew would be asleep all day.

20 minutes rolled by till he heard his aunt coming up the stairs. He turned from his work to greet her with a wave, as she carried up some plates and bowls of food. setting them down on the table, she went right to her spot next to her youngest.

" He just fell back asleep. But he did managed to eat some." Tadashi whispered quietly, smiling at the joy on his aunts face. She beamed, and looked so relieved to hear that. Tadashi got up and picked up the old bowls from earlier.

" Thank you Aunt Cass."

Cass pet his arm and took the bowls from him. " How is he feeling? Did the fever go down?"

Tadashi drew his brows down and looked away. He hated to say it didn't, but Hiro was physically feeling better, so that had to mean something…

" Umm..Well, It went pretty high a couple of hours ago, he was in the bathro-"

"How high?" Cass interrupted, obviously worried. Tadashi paused for a moment.

" ..102.9, but he had just woken up for the first time all day and had to puke, so after all that was done, I got him comfortable and washed him down a little. He told me he was feeling better then he was before, so I really wasn't worried too much. It has gone down a little though, last I checked it was 102.7."

Cass's face fell and she looked over to her youngest one. "…Maybe I should call a doctor.."

Tadashi hated to see her so worried. She needed to worry about her job, and rely on Tadashi to take care of it. " Aunt Cass, I already talked with him. I told him that if he doesn't improved in a couple of hours, I was going to take him to the hospital. Hes been really good at trying to drink and eat more, and says he feels better, so I was going to see and make a decision when he wakes up. If his fever isn't down by then, or gets worse when he's sleeping, then he's going to be taking a cold bath…I just haven't told him that part yet…"

Cass smiled, chuckling slightly. " Ohh I would _love_ to see how you handle that one" Tadashi smiled, agreeing with her. " But yes, that's probably a good idea…If you need help let me know, and for the love of god please keep me updated. I know you don't want me to worry, but I worry not knowing what's going on."

Tadashi apologized to her, and she turned to leave, bidding her nephews a goodbye and that she would be back in a few hours once the cafe was closed. Tadashi set Hiro's bowl next to him on the table, and went back to work, scarfing down his food, not even realizing how hungry he was.


	10. Chapter 10

* * *

The older Hamada stretched, dropping his pen on the table, and his head in his hand. The clock read 7:45, but it felt like 10pm. The cafe was closed and his aunt should be all cleaned up by now. He was so tired. The day had been so long, with Hiro sleeping for most of it. Tadashi had taken a break, to clean their room a little and clean their bathroom, but at least Hiro stayed asleep. He walked to his side of the room and packed away the books he no longer needed. Looking at his bed longingly, he hoped he would get a better nights sleep. That _both_ would get a good nights sleep. He rubbed his tired eyes and walked back over to the large desk, flopping down in the chair. He shut his eyes for a moment, resting them.

He was so glad he had the chance to talk with Hiro earlier, and had gotten what was bothering him off his chest. But still, why did Hiro think that he didn't want to spend time with him anymore? Sure the boys hardly talked with each other when they were alone, and if anything, it was one yelling at the other, but to think that Hiro thought Tadashi wanted to move on and leave him behind hurt him. At least it was all on the table now, and he was able to shred those thoughts and replace them with the truth, but still. To think he let Hiro carry those feelings for who knows how long. It's no wonder the boy would end up sick like this eventually.

Still resting his eyes, Tadashi was unaware of the world around him, and unaware of Hiro's change in face. After about 3 minutes, Hiro began to whine slightly, and thats when Tadashi was pulled back to reality. He jumped a little at the sudden noise, and looked over his shoulder at Hiro. His back was towards him, but he wasn't moving around or anything. Tadashi sat there for a moment, then picked up pen up again, turning back to his book. At that same moment, Hiro gasped, sitting up quickly, panting hard.

Tadashi jumped, quickly turning around to see what the fuss was. " Hiro?"

Hiro didn't even look at him, just sat panting. Sweat poured off his face, and his arms were shaking. Tadashi quickly got up and made his way around the bed, grabbing his sibling by the arms. He recoiled immediately at how hot he was to the touch.

" My god..Hiro?!" Hiro wasn't even aware of his older brother there. He just sat there, eyes closed, breathing heavy. Tadashi rushed a hand up to his brother forehead, and worry washed over him. He was burning up, badly. But he was fine before! Tadashi cried out in his head. He pushed his brother back down on the bed, and reached over grabbing the ear thermometer, and placed it inside his brother's ear. Hiro tried to pull away form the sudden chill in his ear, but Tadashi placed his hand on the other side of his head, keeping him still as he squirmed. Hiro whined and moaned alittle, as if still stuck in a dream. He was obviously delusional.

" It's okay buddy, it's okay. shhhh, I'm right here" Hiro tried to move, but Tadashi held him still, shushing him.

The devise beeped and reading it quickly, Tadashi could feel his heart drop. 103.5. _Shit! How did this happen_? Fevers always have a habit of going up before they go down to break it, but now wasn't the time to think. He was getting a bath whether he wanted it or not, and he was calling their aunt.

"..Alright buddy, you're not gonna like this, but I don't have a choice.."

" What's he not going to like? What's wrong?"

As if on que,Tadashi quickly turned around to see his aunt. He didn't even hear her come up. Relief washed over him though as she hurried over as soon as she saw Tadashi perched over Hiro's body. she looked worriedly at her young nephew, and immediately placed her hand on his forehead. Tadashi still held him down as he panted hard and squirmed a bit. She brought her hand back, and looked at Tadashi with deep concern.

" His fever's way too high. Tadashi, what's his-"

"103.5. I was just about to call you and run him a cold bath to bring it down."

Cass wrapped her arms around herself. " His body must be trying to break it.." Her heart broke as she watched her nephew struggle. All of a sudden, Hiro's eyes flung open and he sat up quickly. Before anyone could say anything, Hiro leaned over the side of the bed, and emptied his stomach on the floor.

Tadashi jumped up, and Cass ran over immediately, jumping into mother mode. She grabbed the bucket on the floor and placed it under his chin while she began rubbing his back, whispering words of comfort in his ear. Tadashi wasn't sure Hiro was even aware of his surroundings, but he ran into the bathroom knowing his aunt could take over. He immediately ran the cold water, and brought some towels back with him to clean up.

Hiro cracked open his eyes, but was hardly registering what was around him. Cass put her hands on his face, to try to make him look at her.

"Hiro, sweetie, I'm right here. Can you hear me?"

Hiro said nothing, until he muttered an almost inaudible "…'m hot.."

Cass let worry and sympathy wash over her. " I know you are, honey. Tadashi's running you a cold bath right now okay?"

Hiro croaked out quietly "…dashi?"  
Cass ran her fingers threw his hair. " Yes, honey. Tadashi's here and he's running the bath for you."

Hiro muttered something she didn't catch, and became unconscious. Cass waited with Hiro, watching him intently while Tadashi finished cleaning the floor and filling the tub. Once he was done, he went back to his aunt, who looked at Tadashi with worry.

Tadashi smiled, trying to keep her from worrying too much. " Well, I'm all set, so I'll take him from here. You may not want to stick around though.."

Cass smiled and nodded her head. " I understand, don't worry. I'm going to clean up in here and change his sheets. You….good luck okay? Let me know If you need my help. And sweetie, if this doesn't make his temperature go down, then we're going to the hospital."

Tadashi nodded, and walked towards his brother while Cass went downstairs to get fresh sheets. He was confused to why she wanted to clean alittle, when he just did, but whatever. His brother was passed out on the bed. Tadashi prepared himself for what would be the most challenging thing hes done all week.

* * *

Tadashi began to pull Hiro's shirt off of him, figuring it was a good place to start. He then tugged at his pajama pants and they slipped off with ease. He figured he could leave his boxers on. Not much different then swim trucks…and would save him the embarrassment, being 14 and all. The boy stayed asleep, and Tadashi breathed a sigh of relief. It would be easier without Hiro fighting for his clothes. Picking his brother up gently, Tadashi carried him bridal style and walked towards the bathroom. He stayed sound asleep. _Good_ , Tadashi thought, as he pushed open the bathroom door. Aunt Cass was downstairs, and figured she would give the boys a few minutes to prepare before coming up to clean and replace the sheets.

Entering the bathroom, He stood for a moment, wondering if he should attempt to wake Hiro first. He didn't want him to freak out and panic at the sudden submerge in the cold, but he also didn't want him to refuse and fight him. Feeling his warm skin under him, he decided to just go ahead and slowly put him in. Maybe if he can slowly bring him back to consciousness, it would all be fine.

" Okay buddy, we're gonna do this slow, alright?" Tadashi bent down by the tub, and slowly began to lower his body in. Hiro didn't seem to notice at first, seeing how he was such a heavy sleeper anyways, but as soon as the water enveloped his waist, Hiro woke with a jump and gasped, successfully twisting out of Tadashi's arms and right into the cold water below.

" Whoa whoa whoa! Calm down!" Tadashi tried to still his flailing brother by hanging on to his shoulders, but Hiro would have none of it. He attempted to lift himself up by grabbing the side of the tub, but his hands kept slipping as he got everything around him wet. Puddles formed on the floor below Tadashi's knees, and soaked his shirt. Hiro took a handful of Tadashi's clothing, and tried to climb up, but the older Hamada grabbed his hands, trying to shush him. He kicked and pushed against the wall, but found he did not have the energy to escape whatever he got himself into. The flailing only lasted about 15 seconds, but Tadashi thought it felt more like 5 minutes. He waited until Hiro had calmed down, before saying anything else. Once the little brother stopped trying to get out, he sat there shivering, trying to catch his breath and regulate his gasping breathing.

Hiro started to wake up more as he took in why just happened. Looking down, he noticed all his clothes except his boxers were missing, and he was overcome with embarrassment. Drawing his knees up to give himself a little more coverage, he stared down at the water, still not use to the chill. His body was shivering all over and couldn't stop the shaking, It was all very unexpected, and he did not like it one bit. Once he was now fully aware, he looked over to see his older brother, who had his hands on his arms.

He wanted to kill him.

Hiro drew in a deep breath, and looked at Tadashi with complete shock. Teeth chattering, he managed to start trying to yell at him. "..A….are you…s..serious?! Whats the…m…matter w..with you?!"

Tadashi looked at his brother, and couldn't help but smile a little. At least his brother was fully awake and yelling at him.

" Sorry bro, but I didn't have a choice."

Hiro nearly lost it, and tried to climb out, only to be pushed back down.

" Tadashi, Let m…me out!"

Tadashi kept a stern voice. " No, you need to stay in till you cool down,"

Hiro clenched his teeth. " This is dumb! Why would you do that?! I was feeling fine!"

Tadashi bit back a smart remark, and calmly, but sternly spoke. " Your fever spiked to 103.5 degrees, I had to do something! it was either this, or bring you to the hospital"

Hiro sat there staring at his brother, dumbfounded. _It did_? Even Hiro could admit that was not a safe temperature. He understood why..but he really hated it. Dropping his face to a look of disappointment, Hiro looked back down at the water. He had no idea it had gotten this bad. Last he remembered was Talking with Tadashi before, then he fell asleep. Tadashi's voice interrupted his thoughts, and he tuned back in to his brother.

" Things were pretty bad for awhile bro. Aunt Cass came running up to help. She's cleaning up now."

Hiro started to feel bad, but before he could let that emotion take over, Tadashi dipped a hand into the water, grabbed a washcloth, and laid it on Hiro's neck. The chill made him gasp, and he bit his lip to stop him from retaliating on him. Tadashi squeezed his shoulders, wanting Hiro to look at him.

" Before you go and start feeling bad, don't worry. Everything is all over with and under control, we are just waiting for your body to cool down a little." Tadashi smiled at Hiro, but he didn't return it.  
After sitting in silence for a couple of minutes, Hiro finally spoke.

"…Can I get out now?.."

Tadashi shook his head. " Not yet bud, its only been about 6 minutes. I want to make sure it's working."

Hiro began to feel nervous. It just occurred to him that If this didn't work, he was sure to be rushed to the hospital. He really didn't want to go there, and figured he could tolerate a little cold water if it would keep him out of there. Sinking in a little further, Hiro closed his eyes and whined alittle. Tadashi rubbed his back sympathetically, as they waited.

* * *

Cass had changed Hiro's sheets out and re-cleaned the floor that Hiro had thrown up on. She also pulled away their laundry and quickly disinfected some surfaces. As soon as she had come upstairs, she could here shouting going on, and the sound of skin squeaking against the wet tub. She decided she didn't want to hear anymore, and got right to work. She made sure to always stay busy at times like this, because she was just as worried.

She knew that her nephews could tell when she would fret over something, so they made a habit of trying to hide certain things from her if they knew they could handle it themselves, without having to worry her. Little did they know, that she knew everything about what went on with her boys. She knew when Hiro had gotten those stitches in his arm when he cut himself at the lab. Tadashi had brought him over to the hospital, and they didn't tell their aunt about it. She knew. She also knew that time Tadashi had falling off the ladder in the garage trying to reach something, and twisted his ankle. Or when the boys play got too hard and one got pushed down the stairs. All the minor cuts, bumps, and bruises they had received, but tried to hide, she knew about. They were hers, and she promised herself she would get to know them in every way she could, like any mother would know. She had kept that promise.

She would call them out on it occasionally if things had gotten too far. She made sure to keep Tadashi off his feet when he hurt his ankle, giving him sit down projects to work on so he didn't suspect she knew. She made sure to have her back turned as Hiro struggled to put his coat on after he hurt his arm. It wasn't that she wanted to pretend to notice, but the kids seemed to smile more, knowing they did something stupid, but fixed it without putting worry on their aunt. As long as it wasn't dangerous or hazardous, She let them take responsibility for their mistakes, and played none-the-wiser.

The sounds coming from the bathroom settled down. She figured Tadashi had handled it, and she began to fix up Hiro's bed to make it more inviting. Truth was, she was scared. Scared that his fever wouldn't go down, scared that they would need to bring him to the hospital, scared of seeing him panic and scared of ever seeing him be in that much pain again. Physically and emotionally. When a child gets sick, of course the parents tend to worry. But Cass felt like she had more worry then their real parents would have, because they were her new responsibility. She worried about every cut they had, but never let it get to her or let it show. Kids will be kids, she believed that, but that didn't mean she couldn't ignore the fact that the minute one had a sliver, she wanted nothing more then to scoop the child up, cuddle them, and tell them everything will be okay.

"There! All done and ready for messing up" Cass clapped her hands together. After everything was all set and done, she laid out a new set of clothes for Hiro by the door, and retreated downstairs to heat up some more soup and some toast.

* * *

20 minutes had passed, and Hiro sat miserable in the water. Neither boy said a word. Tadashi had his back turned away, leaning against the side of the tub as Hiro stewed in anger. Figuring it would be best to give him some space, Tadashi chose to turn and focus on something else. Checking the time, he got up and grabbed a towel, alerting attention from the younger sibling. He opened the door slightly, to find some clothes set out on the floor. Bringing them inside, he held up the towel, looking at his brother. Before he could say anything, Hiro sat up, leaning over the tub to snag the towel. Tadashi rolled his eyes and grabbed a second one, helping him to stand up and sit on the edge, wrapping it around his shoulders.

" Tadashi, stop, I can do it" Hiro become frustrated with the help getting out of the tub, but without thinking before he opened his mouth, he realized that his legs were weak. It took everything he had just to sit up straight. He recoiled, wishing he had accepted the help so he didn't need to embarrass himself, but luckily Tadashi already knew that. He chose to ignore his little brother, and continued helping to save him anymore embarrassment. He rubbed the towel on hiro's head, drying his hair while taking a mental eyes were still glassy, but he looked a little better then before, and he was fully awake now.

" There, how do you feel?"

Hiro relied curtly. " Cold."

Tadashi rolled his eyes and passed Hiro this clothing. He turned around while Hiro slowly got dressed, which took about 5 minutes for 3 articles of clothing. the older Hamada figured it was wise to not rush him.

After Hiro was all set and redressed, Tadashi helped him walked back to bed. the room was really clean looking, and his bed looked so comfortable and clean. Eager to get back into it to sleep, Hiro climbed in.

* * *

Aunt Cass had come up the stairs a few minutes later to see Hiro all clean and nestled into bed. Tadashi was talking to him, passing him a water bottle. A smile crept on her face as she looked at them. Hiro looked like he was feeling better, and that was a relief. She sat down on the bed and placed her hand on his forehead. He still felt warm, but not like before. She reached for the thermometer and after setting it, gave it to Hiro.

" There! Now, lets see if that struggle was worth it."

Hiro looked away embarrassed and Tadashi laughed. A minute later they got their reading, and all three of them were relieved to read 102. It had dropped tremendously. It wasn't great, but much better then it has been. At this, Hiro perked up.

"Soo…no hospital? "

" No hospital. _Unless it flairs up again_ " Tadashi replied, making sure to enunciate on the second half. That was enough for Hiro, and he relaxed alittle.

Hiro managed to eat his toast and a few spoonfuls of his soup before getting tired. Cass kissed her nephew on the head, and bid him goodnight as she carried the bowls downstairs. Tadashi sighed relieved. He was greatful to Aunt Cass for taking care of things here while he tended to Hiro. Hiro was nearly passed out sitting up, so Tadashi took the initiative and suggested they both get some rest. It was late, and he hoped they would both have a good night. Hiro fell sleep instantly while Tadashi shut things down.

Tadashi laid down in is bed, hoping to not awake until tomorrow morning.

Hiro only woke up once that night, tho It was only for a headache. He had managed to keep all his food down and his fever was down by morning. It was now Saturday, and the Cafe opened a couple hours later, so Aunt Cass was able to make a light breakfast for the boys, and take her time. She made her way upstairs to wake Hiro up, surprised to find her oldest nephew already awake.

" Hey, I'm surprised your up. I would think you would take this time to catch up on your sleep!"

Tadashi was working on making his bed when he turned and looked at her. " Yeah, well my internal clock wanted otherwise." With a slight chuckle, Cass put the food down and went over to help him.

" So how did last night go? He seemed to be much better before I left."

Tadashi nodded his head. " It went fine. He woke up once, trying to open the headache medicine which woke me up, so I helped him with that. But he went right back to sleep and didn't feel too warm."

" That's good to hear. You really needed to get more then a couple hours.." Cass looked at him almost apologetically. She had wished she could take on more and had been in Tadashi's place so that he could rest properly and focus on school. She knew he never would have let that happen, but she couldn't help slightly wishing it was her then him. Tadashi just brushed it off and smoothed his covers over.

" No, really I'm fine. And honestly, I'm glad. I think this little bonding time we've had was needed."

Cass just nodded her head, fully aware at this did need to happen. Of course, she had noticed that her boys weren't as close as they use to be. But they were boys, and both in school. They would be taking on their own lives, but as their Aunt, watching them drift apart without much she could do, was tough. She remembers fondly the days of them playing games and taking care of one another. Hiro would fall and scrape in knee in the park, and Tadashi was there no less then half a second, scooping him up and distracting him from the problem while he tended to his brothers wounds.

Watching them grow and both be in school together was great, but she could see them slipping. They got along fine and well, but paid no extra attention to each other nowadays. Hiro was 14, now, and Tadashi in his 20s, It was important for them to hold the bonds with their worlds evolving so fast. It hurt Cass to watch them from a distance grow apart slowly. She definitely noticed a change in Hiro towards his brother. He seemed more quiet nowadays, and didn't want to ask for anything or get in anyones way. Cass would watch Hiro sit at the dinner table, glancing over at the third chair, waiting for Tadashi to get home after working late in the lab. She would also watch Hiro's face light up when he got home, only to fall with disappointment when he would have to rush back out again. Cass watched it all, but didn't blame Tadashi. She had tried to sneak in a couple words in-between, saying things like " when you get home, why don't we all watch a movie together?" or " Hey, the lavender festival is this weekend, who don't you take Hiro?" But he was so busy with perfecting his projects or being needed at the lab, there just wasn't any time for frivolities. Watching Hiro's look of disappointment was hard, but the hardest was seeing him with no emotions at all.

It got to the point when he expected Tadashi to not be home for dinner, or not see him on certain days. The boys were like strangers living in the same house. With their friends, it was fine, but alone they didn't seem to even noticed each other. That was the hardest thing for Cass to see. As much as she hated Hiro being so sick, she felt guilty admitting..that maybe she had wished for this to happen. It made both brothers remember what was important.

" I'm so glad to hear that" Cass looked at Tadashi and smiled, relieved. Tadashi smiled back, knowing that she was aware of Hiro's nightmares too. While he never discussed the meaning behind them, he knew she probably was aware of what was going on without being told. She always did have a knack for that.

Finishing the bed, Cass strolled over to her youngest nephew to wake him to eat.

* * *

Aunt Cass took Hiro's temperature after breakfast, and was pleased to find it back at a more comfortable level. Sighing with victory, she leaned back looking at Tadashi, who was looking at Hiro with approval.

" There! Looks like you broke the fever!" Cass beamed at Hiro who seemed slightly embarrassed at the big deal his aunt was making. Shifting uncomfortably, Hiro cleared his throat.

" So….can I get up then?"

"Nope!" Cass smiled at him, putting the device back down. Hiro frowned and dropped his shoulders, looking like he was about to argue. Cass continued before he could throw in his two cents. " Sorry Kiddo, you know the rules. One more day for good measure. but you've got plenty of homework to keep you occupied!" Cass patted his leg, and stood up. " As long as you eat normally today and keep it down, you good to go!"

Hiro rolled his eyes and gave her a smirk. "..okay." Cass bent down and brushed the hair off his forehead, giving him a kiss.

" I'm glad your feeling better, sweetie." With that, she turned and walked out, giving Tadashi a grateful look. Tadashi sat on the bed, looking at Hiro who was slightly pouting. Being sick and in bed was one thing, but when you felt better, but still had to stay in bed, that was another. Tadashi sympathized with his brother, and messed up his hair. Hiro swatted his hand away, and Tadashi laughed.

" Good to have you back, bro. Don't worry, you'll be up and about soon."

Hiro smirked and shook his head. " Yeah yeah…" He trailed off in his mind. Tadashi stood up and stretched. If Hiro was going to be in bed one more day, then he could be here too. Walking over to the desk, he began to rummage through his things, pulling out stuff to work on for him, and some of Hiro's work.

Hiro sat in his bed, rubbing his hands. He waited a few moments to build up the courage to ask, and took a deep breath.

"..Hey…Tadashi?"

Without Turning around, Tadashi hummed in question towards him, still sifting through his bag.

" Umm…D..did you really mean…what you said yesterday? About making more time to hang out and stuff?…"

Tadashi stopped what he was doing and turned around to look at his little brother. He avoided eye contact, and rubbed at his hands. Tadashi studied this for a second before answering.

" …Of course I did Hiro. Why would I say it if I didn't mean it?"

Hiro released the breath he was holding, and relaxed alittle. Truth was, he was afraid. Afraid that Tadashi would forget and let life go by like normal, or that after tending to his brother these past few days, he would be tired with him already.

Hiro smiled down at his blanket, sighing with relief. " Good, I was just asking.."

Tadashi waked over to the bed and sat down. He grabbed Hiro's face in his hands, and brought their faces close together.

" Bonehead. What? You think I would grow tired of you or something? Tough luck kiddo, like I said, you're stuck with me for life." He pushed Hiro back playfully, and Hiro playfully hit back, laughing. Tadashi laid back on Hiro's bed, lifting his arms over his head.

" Ohh man…what a crazy week. You've got so much work to do, dude"

Hiro face-palmed and shook his head. " Great.."

Tadashi laughed and continued. " Your professor liked your paper by the way, but he told me that he didn't like you sleeping in class, and if you ever do it again, your out of there."

Hiro scoffed. " Yeah, well If he wasn't so boring, I wouldn't of fallen asleep in class."

Tadashi corrected him. " You mean If you had just told me you didn't feel good and stayed home to rest, then you wouldn't of fallen asleep in class."

Hiro bit his lip and turned his head. "..That too.."

Tadashi smiled and sat up. " Well, hopefully next time, you'll come forward and just say what on your mind. Don't make me worry or wonder why you won't come to me. I feel like I haven't done my job as your older brother."

Hiro stared at him in shock " …Tadashi, I'm sorry….I never mea nt to -"

"It's alright!" Tadashi interrupted. He knew Hiro didn't mean to make it seem like that. " I understand, trust me. Just, know that I'm looking out for you, and even if you hate it, I can't help it. I know you'd do the same for me."

Hiro smiled. His brother was amazing.

Tadashi stood up, and grabbed a pile of books and papers, and set them down in Hiro's lap.

" These are for you! You have the weekend, so take your time." Tadashi placed his hands on his hips, and stared at the work, happy it wasn't his. Hiro groaned and placed them on the table next to him. lame.

Tadashi looked towards the stairs, and paused for a moment, wondering how to bring this up with his brother.

"..umm..hey, Hiro? Can I ask you something?…"

Hiro's head snapped up. " yeah, sure."

Tadashi looked around. " Now, please don't take this the wrong way..but, are you okay now?"

Hiro stared at Tadashi for a moment, confused. " What? Yeah i'm fine. " Hiro slipped out one of his books and opened it up, flipping through the pages. " How could I take that the wrong way"

Tadashi rubbed his neck and spoke quietly. " Thats..not what I meant..". The older Hamada sat back down on Hiro's bed, earning a look from his brother, followed by a sarcastic eye roll.

" Tadashi, c'mon, I told you I'm fine!, you worry too much bro!"

Tadashi bit his lip, looking away. Hiro sighed and put the book down. " Okay, you have my attention. What do you mean? and yes, I will answer you."

Tadashi hesitated for a moment, then got right to the point. " I know your afraid I'm going to leave and not come back. At least, that's what your dreams were about, and they made you worry. Are you okay with us being separated now? With me leaving again?"

Hiro paused for a moment. He really wasn't ready for that type of question, and to be honest, he still felt silly about it, even though it was a true feeling. The nightmares he was having were fake situations, but they made him realize that there very well could be something that could take his brother away in a heartbeat. He never really thought about it before, and that realization hit him hard. But of course, he couldn't nor wanted to cling to Tadashi's side forever. His mind would be at ease, but very unhappy.

Tadashi was asking an honest question, and one he had all the right to ask. It would be unfair for Hiro to laugh about it, about the fact it was "just a dream" and of course he would be fine, why wouldn't he? But he knew that what happened bothered Tadashi as much as it did Hiro, but In a different way. Tadashi saw the realization that he may not be here one day on Hiro's face, and to see his little brother panic over the fear of loosing him was enough to break Tadashi down and vow to never let him out of his sight. Hiro knew he needed to explain that it was okay for him to leave, but it was important he talked about the depth of it. It was only fair for both of them to be on the same level of understanding. For Hiro to know it was okay for his brother to leave, and for Tadashi to have some insight that Hiro still needed him in his life.

Hiro closed his eyes and sighed, closing his book completely. At this, Tadashi really had his attention on Hiro, sensing that there was more then a simple yes or no. Hiro rubbed up his arm and spoke quietly.

" Well…yeah. I mean, of course you can go do your things and whatnot. You have your own life too, one that shouldn't always revolve around me. I guess it's just…" Hiro paused for a moment, gathering his thoughts and taking a deep, shaky breath. Tadashi waited patiently, giving his brother a smile, pushing him to continue.

"…It's just that…that stupid dream made me realize that you're not going to be around forever…..and I knew that…but it was shoved in my face. And that at any moment..like, a freak thing could happen, and you could be gone just like that. Any of us can. It just….s..scared me when I didn't think about how easy it was to loose someone. I mean, I know that exact thing happened to Mom and Dad, and you were older so I know that you know, but..I don't know, I was three…so…" Hiro rubbed the back of his neck. " Yes, I'm not afraid of you leaving like when I woke up and the feelings were still there fresh…but I don't know…it still scares me that the quick goodbye or wave to you, could be the last one…"

Tadashi was overwhelmed with sympathy. It must have been truly difficult for Hiro to admit this. This whole event started with his fear of getting detached from his brother, and had to escalate to full blow sickness and bad dreams to make him understand this simple life lesson. Yes, one day he would not here here, and there's always that chance that something could happen very unexpectedly. But that didn't mean Hiro needed to live in fear that his older brother would die on him every time he left the house or his sights. No one could live like that, and still _live_.

When Tadashi's parents died, he definitely learned that lesson at a young age. Live your life with no regrets, and show the people you love that you love them everyday. Cherish each moment with them, the good and bad. Hiro really never learned that lesson. To tell him it, and to learn it were completely different. Hiro just now had learned his lesson. Tadashi needed to help Hiro not only branch out to not be afraid to live life, but to _learn_ it was okay to worry about others, but not in a way that affected your own life. At that point, Tadashi knew he would do more to reassure his little brother that he was okay and happy. Giving Hiro a weak smile, he set his hand on his knee, making the boy look up at him.

" Listen Hiro, It's true that I may not always be here, or that some freak thing could happen and I could be gone." Hiro looked at Tadashi worriedly. It was harder to hear it being told to you. Tadashi continued, squeezing his knee. " But I don't want you to live in that constant fear. It's something that everyone goes through okay? I did when mom and dad died, but you and Aunt Cass helped me. I knew that I still had you guys, and our friends, and I learned to appreciate everyday. Even when your a pain in the butt I still love those times." Tadashi laughed slightly, earning a small smile form his brother. "I know that i've been gone a lot lately. Like you said before, we are both busy with our own things, but along with setting time aside to hang out together, I could probably text you more about when I'm heading home, or how much longer I'll be….we can plan things better so no ones left guessing, okay?"

Hiro smiled and let out a small, airily laugh " Okay, yeah that sounds good." Hiro looked at Tadashi with appreciation, and Tadashi leaned forward, wrapping his little brother in his arms. Something the older sibling never expected, was for Hiro to return his hug so fiercely. It wasn't like his other hugs like if he was scared he would cling and hold on tight. No, this one was different. You could feel the love behind it, the reassurance that his brother was still there. Hiro was making a memory, implanting this moment so far into his brain that when he thinks back on it, he will feel it too. Tadashi hugged him tightly, holding that back of his brother head, and pressing him harder into his shoulder.

Tadashi broke the silence with a quiet whisper " Love you, little brother."

Hiro grinned, feeling a little awkward, but happy. He definitely needed this. " Love you too, bro" He spoke quietly, and with that, Tadashi separated them, pushing Hiro's head to the side for good measure. Hiro grinned and slapped his hand away. Tadashi stood up and stretched.

" Okay, I need some coffee. I'm gonna run down and get some, you need anything?" Tadashi slowly headed to the stairs, waiting for Hiro to place and order.

" Naw, I'm good. Should get started on some of this work.." Hiro looked at his stack pathetically, wishing that Tadashi had forgotten to pick up any of it. With that, Tadashi turned and went downstairs.

Hiro stayed in bed all that day, finished up the school work he quickly ran through. Tadashi stayed up with him, doing more of his work and goofing off with Hiro. The boys hung out all day, playing games and even brainstorming for ideas of a new project they could start together. Aunt Cass came up partially through the day, and towards the evening she came to check Hiro over one last time.

His fever was gone 100% and back to a healthy number, giving him the okay to get up for the rest of the evening. His appetite had returned 10 fold, so Cass decided she would make her nephews favorite dinner that night, and suggested they all watch a movie. The cafe was just closing, so with that going on, Hiro managed to make it downstairs ( With the watchful eyes of Tadashi following close behind) and into the living room. Tadashi watched while Hiro picked out a movie, then went downstairs to offer to finished cleaning up while Cass prepared dinner. The weekend was quiet, but nice as the Hamada family spent it together, playing games and taking walks. It was back to school tomorrow, and as sunday night hit, it occurred to Hiro that things would go back to normal.

While normalcy was good, he would miss spending all this time with Tadashi. While it was an unfortunate circumstance, lets be real, Hiro got to spend almost 5 full days with his brother. The weekend was fun because they all did stuff as a family. He was just afraid that with school happening again, that Tadashi would forget his promise.

Hiro's alarm rang again, signaling it was the 3rd time he should have gotten up. He reached over and slowly shut it off, moaning loudly and he dragged the blankets off his body. At that moment, he could hear the familiar sound of the water turning off in the bathroom, signaling Tadashi was finishing his shower. Slowly sitting up, Hiro tried to open his eyes, but it was no use. As much as he's had lots of time to sleep, he was still tired. His body aches were nearly gone, and his sore throat was now better, but he still found it hard to wake up in the morning, he was not a morning person after all.

Heading to his drawers and closet, he pulled his clothes and sat back on his bed, staring at the clothes in his hands. God he really didn't want to go back. His thoughts were interrupted as Tadashi pushed open the door, with a towel around his neck, all ready for the day. He saw his little brother finally awake, and bid him a good morning.

" Well it's about time you got up! All ready to go back to school?"

" Yeah yeah.." Hiro quietly muttered, as he picked himself up and slowly made his way to the bathroom to get ready.

By the time he was out, Tadashi was already downstairs. Hiro grabbed his shoes and book bag, now even heavier with the extra books in it, and followed him down. On the table waiting was a couple of eggs and toast. Hiro really didn't feel hungry, but it was only because he hated eating as soon as he woke up. He had been awake for not even 10 minutes, and he needed at least 20 before he could eat. Sitting down with a thump, Tadashi tore his eyes away from the paper he was reading and watched his brother.

" Someone didn't want to wake up this morning"

Hiro just grunted in response, looking at the food, and reaching for his juice instead. Tadashi watched this with a curious eye, then dared to ask Hiro the question.

" Everything okay this morning?"

" Everything fine" Hiro muttered as he gingerly picked up a piece of toast to put in his mouth. He then reached down and began tying his shoes on. Looking at the clock, he knew if they didn't leave now, they would be pushing being late, and Hiro knew Tadashi wouldn't want to be late. Tadashi noticed Hiro being quiet, and stood up to put his own shoes on.

The older Hamada watched as Hiro shoved the rest of the toast in his mouth and quickly drank down his juice. Grabbing a bag of food for lunch, he shoved it into his bag. He was beginning to feel a little more awake now that he had eaten and moved alittle, and made his day to the stairs, grabbing the keys to Tadashi's moped.

" C'mon Tadashi, we've got to go"

Tadashi watched his questionably, raising his brow at him. " Are you sure your okay? Your not still sick are you? "

Hiro laughed. " Tadashi, I'm fine! really, but look at the time, dude."

Looking at the clock, the older Hamada realized he was right, and snatched the keys out of his brothers hand and made their way downstairs. Giving their aunt a hug goodbye, the boys jumped on the bike and were on their way.

By the time they arrived, They has a little time to spare. Pulling into the parking lot, Hiro could see their friends standing in a group outside, talking. Hiro jumped off the bike, fastening his bag on this shoulders, and looked ahead. Tadashi got off and pulled his bag on, looking at his brother. He knew he probably needed a little push to get the momentum going again.

Setting is hand on Hiro's shoulder, he bent down and talked next to his ear." Hey! theres our group, wanna go check out Wasabi's new laser before your class starts?"

Hiro had forgotten all about that, and was eager to take a look. Nodding a quick yeah, the boys took off after their friends. Hiro stopped, dead in his tracks and thought for a moment, waiting for his brother to stop too. Sensing Hiro had stopped following, Tadashi slowed down and turned around to find Hiro standing still, looking at the ground. " Hiro?" Tadashi walked back to his brother, and rested both hands on this own knees. " What's up?"

Hiro avoided eye contact for a moment, thinking of how to say what he wanted to say. Then he realized tho, there was no special way to say it. It had meaning, and he knew Tadashi would understand his appreciation for all hes done for him.

Looking up, he met his brothers slightly concerned eyes head on, and recited the phrase he had been wanting to say to his brother.

" Thank you"

Tadashi smiled, and rubbed his brothers head. Hiro just let him, smiling under the mess. Tadashi kept his hand on his head, and replied with a quiet, sincere, " You're welcome." Tadashi straightened up and pushed his little brother forward, making their way to the school. Eager to check out the new projects, Hiro bounded forward to meet with the group to see what they had in store for him. 


End file.
